Retaliation
by AceLegends
Summary: You awoke from your latest reset, ready to commit genocide once again. But what if after seeing the same things happen over and over again, things changed? What if the boss monsters don't just go down in one hit...what happens when Sans and Undyne aren't the only ones to worry about? AU where you,Chara names yourself Frisk in the title screen... can you survive hard mode?
1. Fallen Down

**Fallen Down**

Something was off.

You had just destroyed and recreated the timeline- again- but things were different this time.

First off, the golden bed of flowers you were so used to waking up on were wilted and stained blood red. Shame- you had rather looked forward to the bed of flowers after every reset. No matter how many times you did it, fighting Sans had never failed to take a lot out of you. You sigh as you roll over in your bed of flowers. Nope. Not half as comfy.

You lay on the not-so-comfy bed of flowers and stretch your arm out, inspecting your hand. Pale skin...fingers long and slender...creases in all the right places...this was your body. _Your_ body, not Frisk's. You weren't entirely sure, but you could tell you were older. Roughly 16 or 17...you feel a bit weird, considering you yourself had never lived to that age before..."that" incident.

Still. An adolescent body would prove more durable to monster attacks, and would be far easier to traverse the whole underground in. A pity it wouldn't have much of an effect on your attack stat: monsters, being mostly comprised of magic, take damage in accordance to your killing intent. I mean, how _else_ does a small child like Frisk go around facing an entire civilisation of monsters? Also, you had a red jacket over your green and yellow striped shirt, and long jeans instead of...whatever the hell Frisk always wore. You had always been bothered by the cold in Snowdin, and finally having a jacket was a true blessing. It was strange how you couldn't purchase a jacket _anywhere_ in the underground, and the only monster who had a jacket...you shivered at the thought of those pupiless eyes.

These changes were convenient, that's for sure.

But you couldn't figure out what exactly caused these changes. You roll off the bed of dead flowers with a grunt, only stopping to stretch your limb before you start walking. What could've caused things to change so much? Was it something in the previous run? No, everything had been the same; Sans gave you a bad time, Flowey betrayed you before destroying Asgore as one last (pathetic) plead for mercy, and you had destroyed the timeline and reset to a different one. Everything had been the same in your previous run…what could possibly have been different...

You were so lost in your thoughts that you hadn't realised you had arrived in the next room. It wasn't till Flowey spoke that you were snapped out of their thoughts.

"Howdy! I'm Flowey. Flowey the Flower. Gosh, you must be new to the undergr-"

Flowey stopped short as he took in the sight of the pale skinned demon in front of him .You smile.

"Hello, Asriel."

"Ch-Chara? B-but...you're-"

The trembling yellow flower stopped yet again as you lick your lips. The traitorous flower- no, the traitorous _prince of monsters_ cowers in fear as you take your knife out, its deadly glint of steel only second to the malicious glint in your eyes. You lick it's edge, causing a trickle of blood to drip down the unholy blade. Monster dust from the previous run dissolve on your tongue like salt, and you laugh like the maniac you are as you raise the atrocious blade.

"Goodbye, Asri-"

Wait, hold on…what…? You stare at the knife in your hand. You had been so used to swinging that thing around that you forgot you aren't supposed to have it after a reset. How did…?

By the time you snapped out of your thoughts, Flowey had burrowed into the ground. You curse under your breath. You had hoped to get rid of the weed as soon as possible.

You sigh as you put your knife back in your pocket. The Locket was around your neck, too- how your equipment managed to stay with you after the reset was beyond you, but having the two precious items with you…

Hah. Saying they filled you with determination would be a lie. You were still

confused as all hell, and for the first time in endless timelines, you didn't know what to expect. But you steel yourself as you continue on, DETERMINED to face the unexpected with a smile and a knife to the throat.

This determination was immediately diminished as "the unexpected" that showed up was unlike anything you could've prepared for.

"Oh! Are you alright my child?"

* * *

You were taken aback by the caretaker of the RUINS. Toriel was different- her purple robes were replaced by what seemed like armour of sorts, similar in design to that of Undyne's(you mentally shiver at the name), but silver in colour and embroidered with the Delta Rune in the middle of the chest plate. Underneath the long pleated white skirt were two shining silver boots.

But her change of wardrobe wasn't the thing that surprised you. No, this was something you had never expected to see in a thousand years;

Toriel was _young._

The goat-woman was no longer large and towered over you- although, you realise, she could easily be just as tall as she was back then, just that you weren't used to seeing her in your now adolescent body..

Instead of her usual large build, she was slim and slender in build, but the noticeable bulge on her arms showed that she was anything but weak. Hell, she even had a Monster Sword(it seemed that even the _ancestors_ of the Dreemur Royal family were bad at names) sheathed at her right side. Toriel had always been ambidextrous, and you reason that she wielded her sword in her left hand so as to cast magic with her right; a habit of hers, and you vaguely remember her telling you why back when you first fell, but you can't seem to recall what she had said. Probably wasn't important anyway.

Despite all this though, one thing remained the same: her eyes. The goat-woman, despite seeming ten times younger, still had the same soft, kind, and motherly eyes. The same eyes that earned the immediate trust of the other 6 humans. The same eyes that managed to convince even _Flowey_ that maybe, just _maybe_ she'd be able to make him feel something.

And we all know how well her interactions with those 7 went.

"No bruises...most humans end up bruised pretty bad after falling down a mountain like that...oh! I apologize, I haven't introduced myself! I am Toriel, caretaker of the ruins. What is your name, my child?"

You blink. After Flowey had recognised you, you had figured that monsters around here would recognise you since you were in your own body.. Well, Flowey _was_ aware of the SAVE file, so it wasn't too surprising that he knew and Toriel didn't. You worry for a fleeting moment that Sans would recognise you, but you remember that although he was aware of the SAVE file, he had never seen your actual body. What a relief.

Your mind wanders back to Toriel's question. What was it again? Oh yeah, your name. Funny…you couldn't seem to remember it.

You try hard to remember. You know your real name of course; but in previous timelines, it was a rule of thumb to use the name you had selected at the title screen.

So what was it?

Klowbi? Nah, that was two resets ago. Antisans? Nah, that was back when you were afraid of the annoying pun-loving skeleton. Papyru? No, that was even before Frisk had given up their soul...

Wait…Frisk…?

It all made sense now.

Why everything was different...why things had changed.

That was it.

Their name.

You gulp and look down. _That's what you get for tryna be cheeky!_ You curse to yourself and feel your face burn as you feel your sin of curiosity crawling on your back.

 _Why did you…if you had just resisted the temptation..._

"My child?"

Toriel stares at you in concern.

"If you don't feel like telling me, it's okay…"

You take a deep breath.

It's now or never.

"...My name is...

...

...

...

...

...

Frisk."


	2. Heartache

**Heartache**

You mentally curse at yourself once more as Toriel leads you through the ruins.

You fool! Why couldn't you pick some other name? You knew the name you picked would be the name of the first human- aka you- in this timeline. Yet you just couldn't resist the temptation to find out: what would happen if the first human who fell had been Frisk?

Well, you reasoned, you didn't know for sure your naming had made Frisk the first human instead. It could still have been you, just that you went by the name of Frisk. After all, if Frisk had been the first human, Asriel wouldn't have died and Flowey wouldn't have been there.

Yet...you flexed your fingers as you think...if that were so, why were you in your own body?

Screwing with time was confusing.

"My child? Are you listening?"

Instinctively, you reply:

"Yes mom?"

Toriel freezes and it takes you a moment to realise what you just said. Even after all these resets, you had never really kicked the habit...

Toriel laughs, a heavenly sound(which you simply despised) as she says, "Oh, no worries my child; I get that a lot." It's then that you realise that you're blushing. Dammit- being an adolescent made things far more awkward. For a fleeting moment, you miss being a child; it made it easier to get away with all sorts of embarrassing things.

No matter, the dead wouldn't be able to reveal your secrets to anyone now, would they?

"As I was saying, I want you to wait in this room, okay? Fear not, my child, I shan't take long...well, too long at any rate." Toriel says as she lightly pats you on the head.

"Oh, and take this phone- I'll call you if anything crops up." she smiles at you while carefully places the phone in your hands.

"Be good, alright?"

You nod politely and smirk as the goat lady turns around and soon disappears out of sight.

I'll be good, mother...

You cackle in delight as your knife plunges into the Whimsalot, and dust starts leaking from it's wound. You, however, have never been one for quick and merciful deaths, and it's only after slamming the poor monster into a wall repeatedly, driving your knife deeper in with each thrust(that had sounded better in your head) that you decided the monster had served it's purpose, before cleaving it in half to collect your reward. That was the last one in the room...it had never occurred to you how much easier it would've been to do genocide with your knife from the start. Your adolescent body proves faster and more durable, although durability isn't really the issue here, since the monsters were mostly reduced to dust before they even have a chance to attack.

You open your menu and smile at the sight of your LV. LV 5 already...if there was one good thing that had come from using Frisk's name, the monsters here gave a LOT of EXP. Considering LV 20 was the highest you ever got to, you start to wonder whether a LV cap exists, and if you can surpass LV 20 in this run. After all, if friggin Toriel has armour and a sword, you dread to think of what Sans would be like.

...you decide not to think about that.

You sigh as you put your knife away. It was about time you took a break; after all, the candy in the bowl couldn't eat itself.

It was while munching on those sugar-filled treats of joy(that only came second to chocolate...and maybe butterscotch-cinnamon pie.)that you decided to check the time on your phone. You freeze as the gears in your mind slowly turn to process the what you see.

"It's been 15 minutes... I was supposed to get the call about butterscotch and cinnamon preferences in 5." You growl. You had spent countless timelines witnessing the exact same events over and over again...to the point things were so predictable, you'd get slightly agitated if things weren't _exactly_ the same. Like that one time one of Sans' ketchup bottles at his sentry station had been moved slightly to the left, and you had to run from a FIGHT just to rearrange it. I mean, the thing was distracting you, and having Jerry taunt you while looking over your shoulder to check on the bottle wasn't very good for your sanity.

Maybe it was trauma from the first time Sans had skipped his monologue and "gotten to the point".

You shiver at the thought. Trying to shake the memory out of your head, you decide if goat mom wasn't gonna call you, you might as well call her.

BRING...BRING...

"Hello, this is Toriel. How may I help you,child?"

"Hey mom," you inwardly curse for slipping up again. "I was just wondering...how much longer are you going to take?"

A hearty laugh could be heard over the phone, but it wasn't the same hearty chuckle of an old goat. It sounded...different. Well, her voice WAS different, what with her being younger and all. And voices over phones always come out weird anyway.

"Not much longer. I trust that you have been staying in that room like a good child?"

"Yes mother."

"What a good child you are! I'm almost done with the butter-err, whatever I was doing while I was gone, so just wait a while more, okay?"

"Oh no, take your time, it's fine. Wouldn't want you to get hurt in your hurry."

"You're such an understanding child. Well, I must be going. Bye!"

CLICK...

Curses. She was almost done? She wasn't supposed to be done until you reached HOME in the ruins. Well, you could always just kill as many as possible on the way there, and come back to get the rest later. You lazily make your way across the hallway, keeping an eye out for any Final Froggits or Whimsalots. But as you walk, you realise they're all gone. Strange. There were supposed to be a number of monsters within each room. Or was the quota for a certain area, spanning multiple rooms? You never really noticed if the monsters moved in and out of rooms, since they just popped out everywhere for you to kill.

You start to get nervous as you see a familiar pile of red leaves. The sleeping ghost was supposed to be here. You cautiously walk over to the leaves. Had they made themselves invisible? You hesitate before calling out, "Napstablook?".

...

...

...

...but nobody came.

Strange. Although things had changed, the ghost had been a semi-main character back when Frisk was in control of their own body. It never occurred to you one of the "main" characters could just go missing.

 _Have you ever_ _thought about a world where everything is exactly the same… Except you don't exist? Everything functions perfectly without you… Ha, ha… The thought terrifies me._

That grey monster kid had always creeped you out.

You take a moment to hope that Sans isn't in this timeline. After all, you hadn't heard Toriel say a single skeleton-based pun when she was leading you through the ruins(although the rest of her puns weren't much better...),so Sans not existing in this timeline would actually be possible.

...ah, who're you kidding. You just KNOW he's here in the underground.

How you know is beyond you, but...

It just wouldn't be the underground without Sans.

You sigh. Welp, even soulless, time traveling demons needed to dream sometimes, right?

...you said "welp". Great, now youre starting to sound like the damn skeleton.

You continue onward, but it's no use; all the monsters are gone. Even the spiders at the bake sale had disappeared. And there you thought you could spend a little time to relax, rewind…and pull out their legs.

You start to worry; had you missed something? Were you in the wrong room? Was there a puzzle of sorts you needed to do for the monsters to appear?

You frown. Maybe...maybe there were just less monsters in this timeline?

Somehow, you know it's something bigger than that.

* * *

"Oh! My child, how did you get here? Are you hurt? Hmm...no bruises. Impressive!"

You smile and nod as Toriel praises you. Playing a good, innocent child had always been your forte- and Toriel had always sucked it up.

This time, however.

"But how did you get all this dust on your clothes? Hmm...they'll have to be washed... I'll ask Napstablook to bring them to Woshua's tomorrow morning."

Oh. So the ghost DID exist.

Toriel smiles and leads you into HOME. She shows you to your room, where you decide to take a nap. It had been a long day, after all.

And you'd need energy for what was to come, anyway.

But you realise you couldn't sleep. Something was nagging at you; the feeling like something big was at play, but although you had the pieces, you couldn't fit them together. You had missed something. You _knew_ you missed something. But you didn't know what.

You sigh. Since you couldn't sleep, you might as well get this over with. You stand up and walk out of your room with purpose, only stopping to pick up a slice of pie your next victim had left on the floor. You bite into the thick, crispy, melt-in-the-mouth crust of the butterscotch-cinnamon pie. Weird- although you could taste traces of cinnamon, it didn't taste like butterscotch at all. It tasted weird...bitter. Maybe the Toriel of this timeline was less experienced in cooking- although the perfection of the crust seemed to suggest otherwise. She never asked you for your butterscotch/cinnamon preference, so maybe she had used a different ingredient?

You finish up the pie as you slowly open the door to Toriel's room. It's dark, obviously, but you manage to see just fine, what with you being a demon and all. Your eyes dart around the room, taking in every detail, assessing the situation. A lump could be seen under the covers, heaving up and down slowly. Toriel was asleep. The room itself was mostly the same as that of previous timelines, save for the fact that various weapons, ranging from axes to guns, were hanging up on the wall.

Guns. Unless the soul of Justice had fallen down with a whole arsenal instead of a single revolver, this meant that Toriel should have some contact with the rest of the underground.

The weapons closest to her bed consisted of a glaive, a musket, and what looked like a taser. One of the hooks on the wall was empty...did she sleep with her sword? You realise her armour stand is empty too- if she was wearing her armour in bed, you'd have to make sure to either stab harder or aim for her head. If you failed to kill her in one blow,she'd have quite the arsenal within arm's reach.

But before you actually get to doing the deed, there was something else you wanted to check.

You walk over to a table on your left, which had nothing but an open book on it. You feel a familiar sensation on your back as you find what you're looking for:

"What does a skeleton tile his roof with?

Answer: Shin-gles!"

The skeleton existed.

No surprise, really, but you were seriously hoping that what with things being different, you could avoid that fight in the judgement hall. A weird feeling settles in your stomach. Were you really that scared of him?

You see the figure under the covers stir. You have to move fast.

You draw your knife as you advance, it's demonic steel glinting despite the lack of light in the room. You smile as you step closer to the bed and raise your knife.

"Goodbye, mother."

But suddenly you hear a noise, and you stop. From under the covers, a sound could be heard...

"ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ"

Napstablook was under the covers, saying "Z" out loud repeatedly.

At once you dodged to your left as a fireball whizzed past your face.

"oooh...i'm sorry...i wasn't convincing enough..."

"That's okay, Napstablook dear. You've been very helpful evacuating the monsters in the RUINS throughout the day, and I couldn't thank you enough."

You spin around, a sneer on your face. She knew. She had known since the start.

"How did you find out?"

Your voice,although not particularly loud, rings clear in the quiet room like the snarl of a wolf. Although not loud and bellowing like a roar, your question stung with such menace that Napstablook sort of jumped, before fading away like the coward he was.

Toriel was unfazed.

"Let's just say...a yellow flower told me."

Asriel, you traitor...

You sidestep as Toriel dashes towards you with a quick stab, and parry the spinning slash that follows up. You lose balance for a moment, but you regain your footing. The goat was stronger than you expected.

Sensing your temporary unsteadiness, Toriel does a quick foot sweep, but you deftly jump over it. You continue dodging in an attempt to see a pattern to Toriel's attacks, but they don't seem to follow one. You keep dodging.

Soon, the both of you are dueling in the living room. This Toriel may have given off the same motherly aura as those of other timelines, but in battle...she was vicious, striking hard and fast at everywhere at once. She feinted attacks multiple times too; she proved to be a cunning one too.

How cunning exactly, you had underestimated.

A sudden pain in your stomach causes you to suddenly buckle in pain. Before you recover, Toriel kicks you so hard it sends you flying over the railing of the staircase. Landing in the steps, you barely have time to move out of the way as the goat woman jumps and lands at the spot you were at. You attempt to slice her with your knife, but another sudden pain in your stomach causes you to double over. You lose your balance and fall down the stairs.

Slowly and weakly, you get up on your hands and cough. Fresh, bright red blood splatters onto the floor in front of you. You look up at Toriel with an accusing glare as you spat at her.

"What have you done to me?"

Standing on the steps, Toriel towers over you, her blade and armour glinting silver in the golden glow of the fireball she holds in her right hand.

The warmth of the motherly aura you had almost grown attached to was completely gone. The monster standing before you wasn't Toriel, caretaker of the RUINS; it was Queen Toriel Dreemur, hallowed protector of monsterkind. She opens her mouth, and you hear a sort of mocking tone in her cold, uncaring voice.

"How did you like my buttercup-cinnamon pie?"


	3. Heartbreak

**Heartbreak**

Buttercups.

It had all started when you and Asriel were trying to decipher Toriel's cursive handwriting. As a result, the two of you had misread "butter, 1/4 cups" as "buttercups", and gave Asgore food poisoning from eating a buttercup pie. After being grounded for a month, you had hated buttercups ever since.

Now you didn't know which pissed you off more: the buttercup food poisoning you were suffering from, or the fact that a buttercup with a face had ratted you out to Toriel.

You're getting quite sick of buttercups.

As you cough out yet another saucer's worth of blood, you realise that you have absolutely no chance of winning. Toriel was in full-on warrior mode: no pleading or bluffing would work now. You were too weak to fight her straight on, and your most remote chance of escape was the staircase behind her, as you were far too weak to outrun Toriel to the double doors that led to the rest of underground

Your only choice was to reset.

You close your eyes and focus all your determination in your SOUL. A familiar red aura surrounds you and you smile. Any moment now...

But the pain in your stomach does not recede, and the multiple gashes and burns on your skin stay there. It didn't work. Panicking, you try again, waiting for the familiar feeling of being jerked back across time and space...but it never comes.

A kick across the face sends you sprawling backward from your position kneeling on the floor, and you barely have time to roll away from a deadly fireball coming your way. In so doing, however, you roll straight into a pillar of flame that bursts out of the ground beneath you. Desperation overcomes you. Why wasn't it working?

You glance at your HP. It was extremely low; a few more hits and you were down for the count. You grimace as you see Toriel create another fireball. If your SAVE file wasn't working...what would happen if you died...?

 _"Please, Chara...don't do this anymore..." Asriel wailed as he watched his adopted human sibling down yet another dosage of buttercup poison._

 _"I'm not sure I want to do this anymore...please Chara, stop!"_

You stand up, only to be knocked down yet again by another glowing orb of fire. Toriel advances, sword gleaming in the light of her flames.

 _You finish your bowl of buttercup soup and slam it down on the bedside table, glaring at Asriel. "We had an agreement, Asriel. I kill myself with poison, you absorb my SOUL, and we make mankind pay. All you have to do is let me kill myself before absorbing my SOUL; I'm the one who has to deal with poison, death, and getting my SOUL absorbed. And now YOU want to back out?!"_

 _"That's exactly the point! I can't stand to see you suffering like this...please, Chara! It's not too late...if you stop taking the poison and let Dr Gaster cure you, you can still-"_

 _"ASRIEL!"_

 _Your goat brother stops and looks down, tears in his eyes. You sigh and your voice softens._

 _"Look here, As, I don't like doing this either. But I can't stand living my life knowing that I'm the sole hope for the underground's freedom, and the only one who can get revenge on humanity, if I don't accomplish either of those things!"_

 _"But if you accomplish those things, you can't live at all!"_

 _"...go prepare more soup, Asriel."_

 _"But Chara-"_

 _"GO!"_

Toriel unleashes the flames, which you barely manage to avoid- your attempt at a dodge was no more a fall than it was a jump. You roll backwards into a crouching position in an attempt to regain footing, before bursting forward with your knife thrust forward, but Toriel sidesteps, and grabs you by the hair as you dash by. You scream in pain as Toriel swings you around before smashing you face-first into the wall, making a small hole in the process. She drags your face along the wall, before she throws you into the heavy double doors that are the exit to the RUINS. You barely have time to recover from having the wind knocked out of you before the ground beneath you erupts into flames, burning your entire body and throwing you upwards. You slam into the roof, before landing face first on the ground. You grit your teeth as you slowly raise your head up, just to see Toriel channeling yet another miniature sun in her right palm. You close your eyes, awaiting the final blow.

 _You close your eyes and lay down on your bed as your brother takes the bowl off your bedside table, and hurries out of the room. You hear the door close, and after waiting for Asriel's footsteps to fade away, you allow a single tear to fall from your eye,_ _and let it roll down your cheek. There was no need to cry, you told yourself. After all, Asri_ _el would take your SOUL, and you'd live on within him...right? You had told Asriel that when he absorbed your SOUL, you would take control and do the killing for him. But in truth, you didn't know...even if Asriel took your SOUL, would your consciousness disappear?_

Your eyes snap open as Toriel launches the fireball at you. No- no! You couldn't die...you wouldn't allow it! The SOUL you had belonged to Frisk...

If you died...you wouldn't feel a thing anymore.

With one swift swipe, you slash the fireball with your knife, causing the flames to dissipate. Toriel's eyes widen in shock and surprise as you lunge towards her, knife in hand, teeth bared. And eyes filled with DETERMINATION.

 _"Fear not, my child... I am not your enemy. I... I only wish to help you."_

 _You look up at the large goat with purple robes. Although large, she doesn't intimidate you- but you avoid her gaze._

Steel clashes and sparks fly.

Toriel barely manages to parry your blow, but you had charged with such force that you had knocked the blade out of her hand.

 _She isn't discouraged. She continues to try and convince you she means no harm, but you continue to avoid her gaze. You feel a hand on your shoulder, and you slowly look back at the goat child who had saved you. He looks back into your eyes and nudges you towards her. You hesitate, but you take a step forward._

You start your wild and relentless assault. Your strikes grow faster and stronger by the second, as your mind reverts back to its most primal instinct. _I cannot die, I cannot die, I cannot die-!_

Cracks show in her armour.

 _The large monster stretches out her arm, offering her hand. You step back and raise your arms to shield yourself from the incoming blow, but it never comes. You slowly lower your arms as she gives you a warm, sunny smile. You take her hand, and green magic erupts from it, healing your wounds. You look up at her in amazement as you feel your wounds disappear. She gives you a smile as the green magic dissipates around her left hand. "I call this my healing hand. Do you like it?"_

You strike her armour one last time before it breaks apart. You bring your knife down on the goat, but she raises her sword arm out of reflex to block it. Screams can be heard as her left arm erupts into dust _._

 _You nod vigorously, and you smile back at her. You knew what the stories said; monsters were vicious, and could rip your SOUL straight out of your body. Yet you felt an aura around her, one of warmth, kindness and love...yet these words meant nothing, as the aura was truly a feeling you couldn't describe._

 _Was this what it was like to have a mother?_

Your knife cleaves through the soft, tender flesh. No blood stains the snow white fur- there is only dust.

You stand there, panting, still holding your knife up in the air.

You stand there, with the dying corpse of your mother at your feet.

As she dissolves into dust, she looks at you with tears in her eyes. The hardened warrior is gone- what remains is the face of a young, yet aged and frail goat. As the last of her turns to dust, she opens her mouth;

"They...have been warned." She smiles.

"He...knows..."

And with that, the Queen of monsters explodes into dust.

* * *

You smile as you breathe in the cold but fresh air of Snowdin. Much better compared to the musty old smell of the RUINS.

You chuckle as you walk along. The jacket helped keep the cold out, sure, but you really couldn't be bothered with the cold right now.

LV 7

After slaying the Queen of monsters, you had received a large amount of EXP that had brought you to LV 7. By Snowdin. Considering how all the monsters in the entire underground had only brought you to LV 20 the last time, being LV 7 before reaching Snowdin meant that you were progressing fast. Added to the fact that the monsters from the RUINs evacuated into Snowdin Forest, you'd easily be able to hunt them down and get all that EXP you missed.

You abruptly freeze in your tracks as you hear a branch snap. In your glee, you had forgotten all about him.

"Human."

You immediately spin around, knife in your hand. If you could just kill him off now-

You freeze once more, but this time, no matter how hard you try, you can't seem to move.

As he lifts you off the ground with his magic, Sans stares into your SOUL with those horrible, pupil-less eyes. His mouth, ever in that stupid grin, opens as he says;

"Don't you know how to greet an old pal?"

 **I'm sorry guys, this chap didn't come out as well as planned. I never could do action in between flashbacks, mainly cuz the I have to sum it up in a sentence before it's back to the flashback. Speaking of flashbacks, I think I may have added too many lmao. But hey- with that out of the way, we finally meet Sans. I tried to make Sans' speech in Comic Sans font, but I just realised doesn't allow it. Shame. Oh well.**

 **Oh, and before I forget, I want to thank each and every one of you for reading and reviewing this story. It truly means a lot to me that some of you really like this story as it's my first fanfic. At first I had a different version of this Chapter, one that I was seriously dissatisfied with. It was only after reading your reviews did I add in a few more scenes of Toriel being badass.**

 **That's all for now. Tune in next time for Chapter 4: Dust in the Snow(title is subject to change).**


	4. Dust in the Snow

**Hey guys, told you I would get it out by Monday! Well, for my timezone anyway...but I did say Tuesday too.**

 **Not sure if this chap was well done, but tbh I was never really good with starts. Oh well. I try.**

 **By the way, before you read the chap, think of one very unlikely monster in the game that will show up as a boss next Chap. It'll be revealed when you scroll down, but guessing is fun.**

 **Side note, if you haven't already tried this in your head, try imagining or playing the boss theme of the character during the fight. Makes in cooler in my opinion. But well, these "unexpected bosses" I have in this fic don't actually have their own boss theme, so...**

 **Happy reading!**

* * *

 **Dust in the Snow**

The room gets chiller. Not the same type of chill that the winds of Snowdin brought to your bones; no, this chill was one that shook your very SOUL.

You were afraid.

Honestly, you had always been afraid of Sans, but it had been a long time since fear managed to spread it's tendrils so deep into your mind...

And the last time that happened, Sans had dunked you really, really hard.

Of course, over the course of multiple resets, you had grown accustomed to getting dunked on, and each time, you would come back stronger and faster. But now, there were no more resets. A feeling of dread comes over you as you realise the position you're in: Sans is holding you above the ground with his magic, eyes blacked out. He was going to kill you, and you couldn't reset. You gulp as his left eye glows blue, and two Gaster Blasters appear out of nowhere and slowly drift towards you.

Then as soon as they appeared, they disappeared as the blue glow fades from the skeleton's eye. He releases his magical grip on you and hastily offers his hand.

"Shake my hand."

You look at him quizzically. Was this some kind of joke...?

"SANS! HAVE YOU CAUGHT A HUMAN YET?"

Oh. So that's why he wasn't dunking you yet.

You are relieved to see that the tall skeleton was more or less the same as from other timelines; tall, skinny and wearing the ridiculous costume of his, although his bones seemed slightly sturdier than last time.

You had been rather afraid that Papyrus would turn out to be surprisingly powerful like Toriel was.

"Sure paps. It's right here."

The tall skeleton's eyes widen and he claps with glee.

"WOWIE! I'D BETTER GO RECALIBRATE MY PUZZLES THEN! NYEH HEH HEH!"

And with that, he turned around and vanished into the snow with an exuberant "nyeh heh heh".You chuckle under your breath. Still as pathetically childish and innocent as always.

You feel a hand on your shoulder.

"Kid."

You slowly turn around to face Sans. The white pinpricks of light were back, but his aura doesn't dissipate. You shiver as you feel his eyes stare straight into your SOUL. With a start you realise that he's exactly your height: you had rather hoped that with your new teenage body you'd at least have a height advantage.

"I know what you did. And the only reason why I'm not dunking you now is because my brother...he's always wanted to capture a human. So throw me a bone and play along, or else..."

He takes his hand off your shoulder, and you tense as he leans towards you, whispering into your ear,

"You're gonna have a bad time."

And just like that, he was gone.

* * *

"Please...no more..."

You pay the snowman no heed as you take the last piece of it, leaving nothing but a useless pile of snow on the ground.

You sigh as you consume a Snowman Piece, restoring your HP to full. You had initially wanted to stockpile a few Snowman Pieces in case you had to fight Sans early, since you didn't have many good healing items. You hadn't expected the SNOWMAN to put up a fight. Hell, the thing couldn't even move the last time, let alone retaliate. But this time, it got you pretty good.

You repaid it by cleaving off pieces of it's body bit by bit, as slowly as possible, before eating tiny, 1HP worth bits of its snow right in front of it until you fully recovered.

You check your LV. In addition to native monsters of Snowdin forest, you had managed to find many of the monsters that had escaped from the RUINS, and with your most recent kill of the snowman you had reached LV9. You sigh. You should have reached LV15 by now, what with monsters of two different areas nearly flooding the place. But you had to waste precious time playing along with the skeleton's damned puzzles. You grumble as you check the time on your phone. You would have at least reached LV12 by now if it wasn't for the accursed junior jumble.

You stop in your tracks as you notice something in a nearby bush. You turn and slowly walk towards it, before putting your face in front of the object.

"It's rude to peek," you say before crushing the camera in your hand.

Since Toriel already warned them, it wouldn't hurt to show them you meant business, right?

Like, what could Alphys do?

She couldn't even build a proper human eradication robot.

You laugh your high pitched, maniacal laugh, full aware of the other camera hidden in the trees.

Your laugh stops and smile vanishes at the appearance of a certain skeleton with a blue hoodie.

"What are YOU doing here?"

Sans cracks open an eyelid. Although the white pinprick of light is still there and his grin never fades, you can feel him eyeing you with disregard.

"paps thought that you were getting bored of his puzzles, so he went to make some spaghetti to give you an 'incentive' to complete them."

He pauses.

"listen kid, i appreciate your efforts to make my bro happy, i really do. but if you keep going on like this..."

He gestures towards the pile of snow a few meters away. He sighs.

"snowdin town is just up ahead. if you need anything,i'll be at Grillby's."

He pauses again.

"and if you _do_ anything," his eyes black out. "i'll be _right there to stop you._ "

The skeleton turns away and walks a few steps, before two soft beeps are heard. You see him reach into his pocket and take out his phone. As his eyes dart to and fro on the screen, his grin vanishes.

He scowls.

You were taken aback. Sans never scowled; not when you killed his brother, not when you killed everyone in the underground, not even when you were about to destroy the timeline. All the way through, he had that same, stupid grin on his face...

What exactly did he see that made the grin vanish?

"oh, yeah, i almost forgot," he says, snapping you out of your thoughts. His grin is back, but seems extremely strained.

"feed the dogs for me wouldja?"

Before you manage to compute what the hell just happened, he vanishes.

And all at once you are smothered by 5 furry white dogs.

So that's what the bonehead meant.

...

...

...

...just no.

* * *

The trick to beating Doggo? Stay still, and attack quickly before standing still again.

Lesser Dog? Just dodge, and pet the hell outta him before cleaving his exposed neck.

Dogamy and Dogaressa? There wasn't exactly a trick to beating the two nose-orientated dogs, but it wasn't all too hard either, since they couldn't afford to swing too fast in fear of cleaving an ally or innocent they didn't smell by mistake.

Greater Dog? Parrying it's polearm was easy; the hard part was resisting it's cuteness.

The dogs should have been easy opponents, as apart from sharper weapons and heavier armour they were relatively unchanged, and following your old strategies would have been sufficient to best them.

Following all four strategies at once, however, proved a different story.

Like, it was easy to dodge Dogamy and Dogaressa's attacks with one big leap, but that big leap is basically a giant sign in neon letters telling Doggo to shank you multiple times. Petting Lesser Dog while parrying the attacks of Greater Dog's polearm proved difficult, and you often screwed up the petting process by accidentally leaning your weight on the Lesser Dog, which would earn you a good hard bite on the web of skin in between your thumb and your index finger. The dogs were tenacious too, snarling and biting and slashing all over the place.

If this kept up for a few more hours, there was a possibility that the dogs could kill you. Heh. What a way to go; death by dogs, two of which rely on smell, one who couldn't see things that didn't move, and one that was basically a tiny puppy in a giant suit of armour.

Hold on a second...

As Greater Dog slammed downwards with its polearm again, instead of parrying you sidestep out of the way and grab onto the dog's arm. You pull, and the dog makes a confused sound when it's arm pops off, leaving a tiny flailing whit stub which is its actual limb.

You do a blitz with your polearm-on-an-arm, and successfully manage to catch Dogamy and Dogaressa off-guard as they had identified your new weapon as part of Greater Dog due to its scent. The two dogs burst into dust, which goes all over Greater Dog, who whimpers in confusion as the dust of it's fallen comrades covers it's eyes.

With the lovesick dogs out of the way and Greater Dog fumbling about one armed and confused, you stand still in front of Lesser Dog and pet furiously. The dog yips happily and wags it's tail as its neck elongates, before Doggo, who could only see your hand moving as Lesser Dog's tail was blocked at his angle, jumps out from behind you, doing a cross slash with its daggers. You nimbly step out of the way, allowing it to slash Lesser Dog straight across its exposed neck. As Lesser Dog explodes into dust, you dash forward quickly and stab Doggo from behind, reducing it to dust instantly. You turn around to face Greater Dog, who was now out of its armour and whimpering, pleading on the ground.

You smile a horrible smile as you raise your knife, and the small white puppy whimpers as it scrambles backward. You bring the knife down, to claim your righteous EXP.

Until you get hit in the face by a large fireball coming at you at a hundred miles per hour. You stagger, before falling backwards. Great, more fireballs...you didn't remember any monsters that used fire-based attacks before Hotland...aside from Toriel, of course. Just who could this be...?

"There there, doggie...don't worry, I'll protect you. Go on, get outta here."

You didn't recognise the voice either. It was calm, civilized;reminded you of one of those patronizing waiter people you get at expensive restaurants. Maybe it was Papyrus, speaking softly for once...?

As you raise your head to get a look at your assailant, your eyes widen in shock. It couldn't be...he didn't even fight!

Yet he was there, standing before you in a classy tuxedo and proper tie in comparison to his usual appearance in other timelines.

"You know, Sans had told me of your arrival. Said you would likely cause some trouble. But dusting the Royal Guard like that...Sans was simply too lazy to elaborate on how much trouble you are, wasn't he?" Though he wore glasses, you could've sworn he narrowed his eyes.

"Just like how he never pays his tab."

Standing before you was one of the last monsters you had ever expected to fight.

Grillby, the living flame polishes a shot glass as he eyes you carefully.

"Let's begin, shall we?"

* * *

Alphys had literally fallen off her seat when the human spoke to the camera.

"It's rude to peek."

Then there was that laugh. It was so wild, so uncontrolled- yet she somehow had the feeling that the human knew that she was still watching them.

She shivered. How could they have possibly known...?

Unless...

Sans was right.

The Royal Scientist sighed.. But if he was, what could she do? Chances are, the human had already witnessed a timeline like this one, and already knew of her plans; inject Undyne with dormant determination, and fit Mettaton with her most advanced human eradication weapons. If the human already knew what was coming, then her plans would be useless, wouldn't they?

Unless...she tried "that" idea.

It was risky, sure. But that was exactly the point. Alphys had calculated; the chances of her even _considering_ fixing the machine was less than a one in a thousandth. So if she actually did it...it was the course of action that yielded the highest possibilities of the human not witnessing the outcome. In other words, things would be different, and the human would be unprepared.

Yet the risks involved- if she failed, countless timelines would be destroyed. Not all of them, of course- but the mere thought of killing off multiple timelines' worth of people terrified her.

But if that did happen, she could at least take the human down with them, right? After all, if the readings were correct...

The human had already destroyed far more timelines than what the risks of fixing the machine imposed.

Alphys steeled herself. She had made up her mind. She took her phone out of her pocket and scrolled through her contacts.

She had to go to Snowdin.


	5. The Living Flame

**A/N Hey guys, this chapter is slightly longer than the previous ones, and from now on I'm gonna try to keep them at this length. Sorry if any of you find there to be lack of content in this chap, but Grillby never talked much in-game anyway, and I didn't know what to let him say in case of major spoilers. Or maybe not so major. Meh**

 **Anyways, enjoy!**

* * *

 **The Living Flame**

Grillby looked at his watch. The dogs had reserved a table, but they hadn't shown up yet. Their being late was of no surprise to the owner of Grillby's Human & Monster Cuisines Limited, but rather the fact that they reserved a table. Whenever the dogs reserved a table, it meant that they were planning to celebrate the success of a very important mission after it was over.

If they weren't here, it was likely that their mission wasn't over.

Grillby looks up as the doors to the restaurant swung upon.

"hey, grillbz."

Grillby gives Sans a nod as he strolls in, before plopping down on his usual seat at the counter.

A few moments of awkward silence ensues before Grillby starts to regulate his flames in an ancient alphabet, 'speaking' in his native tongue; _you gonna order or what?_

Sans waves Grillby off and replies that he's waiting for someone. Grillby nods and picks up a shot glass, polishing it with his napkin. For a lazy, pun-loving skeleton, Sans was more intelligent than he let on; he was the only monster in the underground, save for the fire-based ones like Heats Flamesman, Pyrope and Vulkin, that understood Grillby's language. It was an ancient tongue, but although it used no words it did follow an alphabet similar to that of English. Grillby didn't use it much since he knew no one would understand him, but Sans had apparently been able to piece out most of the alphabet from observing Grillby's flames whenever he instinctively swore, or mumbled under his breath. After Sans revealed he knew most of the alphabet, Grillby had started speaking to him in his native tongue, which allowed Sans to learn more of the language. A true genius, that one.

Just like his father.

"hey."

Grillby turns towards Sans, and the skeleton seems like he wants to say something, but stops, before changing the topic.

"where are the dogs?"

 _I have no clue. They made a reservation, but they're an hour late._

Sans seems to freeze for a bit, before he grabs a Grillz Brand ketchup bottle and poises it over his mouth. "May I?"

 _Go ahead._

Sans drains half of the entire bottle of the condiment in an instant, before putting it down with a thump.

"grillby."

Sans looks down at the table, eyes dark.

"if they made a reservation, that means they were on an important mission, correct?"

 _Yes._

Sans' grip on his ketchup bottle tightens, and cracks appear on the bottle as the skeleton's bony fingers threaten to break the whole thing.

 _What is it, Sans?_

Sans sighs and closes his eyesockets.

"look, the human i mentioned before...it's hostile."

 _Then shouldn't we be evacuating?_

Sans shakes his head no. "the human won't be able to harm the townsfolk or shopkeepers. i'm not entirely sure why, but I'm meeting up with a friend to try to...subdue it."

Grillby looks towards the door.

 _But the dogs...?_

Sans doesn't respond.

The loud bang of heavy doors being struck open resounds throughout the restaurant, and bells on the doors jingle furiously. Sans turns, seeing the large doors slowly swing shut, with two slightly blackened and indented areas in the shape of a hand on the each of the door's polished wood.

The ketchup bottle shatters, and Sans slams his head on the counter as his left hand glistens with the thick,savory, well made red condiment he knew he'd never taste again.

"i'll miss you, grillbz..."

You slowly pick yourself up as you eye Grillby cautiously. You had never fought him in any of the previous timelines, and you brace yourself for his next attack; you didn't know his attack patterns, but if the fireball that hit you was anything to go by, he hit hard.

Grillby finishes polishing the shot glass, and inspects it carefully while murmuring to himself. His voice is soft, but your hearing is good enough to just make out what he's saying.

"And to think, after all that happened... I'd have to break my promise anyway." He sighs. His spectacles glint as he adjusts them, eyeing you coldly.

"But let's not make breaking promises my only similarity to Sans, shall we?"

He knows of Sans' combat ability?

Grillby flicks his wrist and throws the shot glass at you, and you instinctively jerk your head to the right to avoid it. As it passes by centimeters from your face, however, it abruptly bursts into flames and you curse as you hold your hand to the burn on your left cheek. You look up at the fire monster with wild rage, but the monster returns it with calm focus, before producing another shot glass. As you instinctively dodge to the left as Grillby makes a motion of flicking his wrist,Grillby smashes the glass instead and sends flaming shards of glass flying towards you. You manage to deflect some with your knife, but many fly towards your legs and cut at your jeans. You smile despite falling for his feint.

Grillby was going to be more fun than you had ever imagined.

 **The Living Flame stands in your way.**

 **FIGHT**

You dash forwards, sliding underneath a thrown shot glass and kicking snow at the fire monster, hoping to catch him off-guard with a follow-up spin slash. However, the snow instantly evaporates as it nears him, and your knife does nothing but cut his sleeve,passing through his arm of flames harmlessly.

Grillby smashes a wine bottle over your head and ignites the alcohol. You leap backwards into the snow and roll around in an attempt to put out the fire. It works surprisingly well, but before you can get up from your position on the ground, Grillby grabs you by the hair and sets it on fire. He knees you twice in the face, before stepping on your hand as you attempt to slash him with your knife. You cry out in pain as you drop your weapon, and Grillby uses this opportunity to serve you a Grillz Brand ready-made all-purpose knuckle sandwich. You fly backwards into a tree, and snow from its leaves fall down on you, burying you under a pile of snow. Well, at least that put out the fire in your hair.

As you burst out of the snow, you leap forwards in an attempt to retrieve your knife which you had dropped earlier. However, Grillby's is renown for its world-class speed and service- a large amount of snow falls towards you once more, suddenly melting into boiling water in an instant. It scalds you all over, and the feeling of your wet clothes sticking to your body is uncomfortable to say the least. You attempt to eat a snowman piece, but a large, burning log flies towards you, and you're only just able to duck under it. The log crashes into the tree behind you, and the entire tree somehow breaks in half and falls on you. You manage to catch the tree thanks to your demonic strength, but before you can hurl it at Grillby, the tree bursts into flame and you drop it in front of you. It explodes, and your HP is lowered to half.

Alright, you don't care how different things were in this timeline; how did Grillby, the bartender turned restaurant manager, have the ability to regulate his flames so well? In an instant, he could evaporate or melt snow, set a log on fire or make it spontaneously combust. Hell, how did a restaurant manager throw a log so hard it could BREAK A TREE IN HALF?

As if he was reading your thoughts, Grillby shrugs. "Regulating flames is very important in preparing dishes- you need world-class control of the flame to cook world-class food." He pauses when you glare at him. "Of course, making logs spontaneously combust isn't exactly used in the kitchen." Although you can't see his mouth(assuming he even has one), you can swear that he's smiling.

The son of a bitch wasn't just a restaurant manager, was he?

You grit your teeth as you stand up. Your entire body aches with burns- it's a miracle that you somehow manage to pull yourself up, albeit shakily. You grimace as you realise your knife is still several feet away, out of your reach. If only you had it in your hands; you could've saved yourself much pain and HP if you had been able to slice the logs in half. You stare at the knife, glistening in the snow. If only it was in your hands...!

Wait a second- did it move?

The knife was moving, slowly and jerkily, but it was moving towards you. Before you can puzzle this one out, Grillby kicks a tree, causing snow, leaves and branches to fall. The snow turns into boiling water and the leaves and branches catch fire, before stopping in midair and flying towards you.

In an instant, a red glow envelops your knife as it flies back into your hands, and you instinctively slice through the projectiles flung at you, which surprises both you and Grillby. You decide to figure it out later, opting to use Grillby's moment of confusion to counterattack with an onslaught of slashes and stabs. No good- it all goes right through him.

Grillby knees you in the groin before kicking you forward, and adjusts his glasses before extending a hand and launching a jet of flame at you. You sidestep, but Grillby is quicker, spinning around and chucking a fireball at you. You're caught in the shoulder, but you barely notice it as you rush forwards towards him, laughing in glee: _you found his weakness._

He creates a wall of flame for you to run into, but you stop short of it, and fling your knife through it. Through the curtain of fire, Grillby doesn't see it coming. He cries out, and the flames disperse as you see him fall to his knees. You smile as you stride towards him, and he looks up at you as you grip the handle to your knife, pulling it out of his right eye. He cries out in pain again, and you laugh maniacally as you plunge your knife into his other eye.

Or you would have, if he hadn't made his spectacles combust and fly towards you, nailing you straight on the face. You stumble backwards and Grillby gets on his feet. With his specs off, you see his white and pupil-less left eye, which would've been cute if his right eye was there to match it. It was dusting slightly, and you realise that the flames around the the eye were getting weaker, so much so that his face was split into two halves, one of brilliant flame and the other of a dying flicker.

"Well...that was...unexpected."

Grillby chuckles heartily, before he abruptly stops, gaze focused on you.

"Ever since I retired from the guard...I never thought I'd have to use this ever again..."

You take a defensive stance as you eye Grillby uncertainly. He seems to be preparing something; a miniature sun forms in his hands, with such radiance and heat that the snow around Grillby melts and evaporates in an instant. It didn't matter though; your knife, bathed in the dust of a whole kingdom of monsters(or, to be honest,just Sans...many, many times), would be able to cut through the projectile, no matter how powerful. Nevertheless, you ready yourself to receive the projectile.

And then Grillby ate it.

You stare at him in surprise. Did he just EAT his special attack? Well, granted he didn't really eat it; he had just popped it into the part of his face where his mouth would be if he had one(or _did_ he have one?). Grillby chuckles as his left side reignited to its original brilliance. He stands there for a while, flames going up and down, more intense and back again, before his body goes back to its normal size and temperature. Grillby laughs; not a chuckle or snigger, but an all out guffaw. He takes his hand off his face as he splutters in an attempt to speak. After a while, he finally stops, and clears his throat before speaking in his regular voice.

"My apologies, human. You might notice that despite it being customary to say a line or two of dialogue before every attack, I stayed silent throughout. While we were fighting, I did try to talk to you, explaining my origins and backstory, of how I learnt to fight and why I'm a restaurant manager instead of a soldier in the royal guard. However, I forgot that you do not speak my native language. You probably didn't even notice my attempts at communication; the varied size and intensity of my flames make an alphabet, which I use to communicate. A silent language, if you will."

Grillby chuckles once more at the utterly horrified look on your face. What, so you were so confused during that fight, for nothing? He was literally answering all your questions as you fought? Get the heck outta here.

"I do apologise for my mistake; however, my special attack is ready, and in a few moments the transformation will begin. As such, I won't have time to translate all that I've said to you. It pains me to have to see you die in confusion, with all those questions floating in your head, but I'm sorry; it has to be done."

And with that, Grillby combusts, and the living flame grows bigger and bigger, before it suddenly shrinks in size but grows so much in intensity that a heat wave is unleashed throughout the forest, and you struggle to stand your ground as the heat gives birth to a raging inferno, evaporating of the snow in the surrounding area before setting the ground ablaze, and all the trees in the surrounding area that aren't reduced to ashes are transformed into blackened candles, crackling with a fire from hell itself. When the heat wave dies down, the thing before you isn't Grillby anymore.

 **RAGNAS, the Carnage Flame awakes.**

Ragnas is the size of an average adult human being, but being almost completely made out of flame meant that his body billowed everywhere, making him seem larger than he is. He wears black and dark red armour that consists of greaves, spikes pauldrons and a chestplate with the delta rune inscribed in the middle. The chestplate only covered the front part of his chest, and from the sides it can be seen that he had a ribcage. His spine seems to be reinforced with black and dark red metal like the rest of his armour. He holds a flail in his hands, ending in a Morningstar completely made out of flame.

 **"HUMAN!"**

Ragnas' voice comes out as a hoarse snarl, and you stagger back as he literally spits flames at you as he speaks.

 **"BY MY CLEANSING FLAME, I SHALL RID THIS WORLD OF YOUR MISERABLE EXISTENCE..."**

 **"I WILL SEND YOU TO HELL."**

You cast your fears aside as you stand your ground. You weren't afraid anymore; you had spotted it. In between those ribs, in the exact center of the demon's chest, was a small, inverted white heart.

"Been there, done that," you say, smiling. "How about I see you there at 5 o'clock?"

"and you're sure it's worth the risk?"

"Look, Sans, I had already made the calculations and weighed the possibilities just now, and this was the conclusion. Don't make me second guess my decision."

Sans sighed. He knew it was the only way,but doing this...it was wrong. Ever since the "incident", they had sworn to never touch the machine again.

Yet here they were, in his basement, repairing the very machine that had destroyed their lives forever.

There was a loud boom, and the ground trembled beneath them. Alphys jumped as the earth shook, and hit her head on the relatively low basement roof. Sans would've chuckled at Alphys apparent hidden jumping ability, but he himself had been so shocked he had instinctively teleported away and back to the same spot.

The two scientists looked at each other.

"What was that?"

Sans growled.

"we have to move."

"What? Why-?"

"if he had to use his special attack...it means the human is close. c'mon- i'll teleport you and the machine outta here, then i'll come back for paps."

Alphys shook her head. "The machine is too volatile- your teleportation would subject the machine to the time-space continuum, and there's no telling what it would do to the timelines. I have an associate waiting outside- he'll take the machine away."

"mode of transport?"

"The River Person."

There was another loud boom, and the earth shook again. The door to Sans' basement opened, and a tall monster in a black trench coat pokes its head in.

"We don't have much time, Dr. Alphys. The human is getting close. Major Ragnas won't be able to hold them off much longer."

"his name is grillby. and he isn't a major anymore."

"All the same," the tall monster began, "we don't have much time. I fear that if we don't move now, we won't have a chance at escape."

"Even if we move now, we won't be able to escape. Sans can teleport us out- the human won't find the machine if it stays here. Then we can come back for it later-"

"no."

The cold and commanding voice caused Alphys to stop immediately. Sans stood there, hands in his pockets, eyes blacked out. But the scariest thing was his scowl; the grim line, only slightly curved downwards at the ends, was such a contrast to his constant grin that it seemed unnatural, otherworldly even on his face.

"the machine is the only hope we have. we can't risk it being discovered- if the human has seen it before, they'll know if we've been trying to fix it. and they'll destroy it. getting the machine out is our first priority; you two should get moving, and quick."

Alphys eyed her friend in concern. "What about you?"

Sans turned away, brushing past the tall monster in the trench coat as he steps outside.

"i'll hold them off."

* * *

 **Is this still Undertale I'm reading? Well, yes it is, and I'm sorry if Grillby seems a little OOC but...he didn't do much in-game so...**

 **Okay, so there're probably two questions in your minds right now...apart from "is this still Undertale?"**

 **was stated that Grillby was once part of the Royal Guard, so why is he just a restaurant manager now?**

 **'s the monster in the trench coat? Is he just a support character, or is he gonna be important? And if he is, is it an OC?**

 **Well, I can tell you that trench coat guy isn't gonna be a mere support character, and no, he isn't an OC. I only plan on fully answering these questions around Hotland, so in the meantime, how about you guys play a little guessing game in the reviews section? Share your thoughts; who knows, maybe I might even take some of your ideas and fit them into mine!**

 **I had originally planned the next chap to be Chara vs Sans, but I'll have to end off Chara vs Ragnas first. Sorry about that, I didn't expect Snowdin to be so long.**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	6. Flames of Carnage

**A/N Hey guys! I'm sorry, this is a bad chapter...I just had to add some exposition and stuff, so I don't think the story flows very well. BUT-** **I have plans. The next chapter will be Sans' fight, and it's where shit gets real. But since exams are coming, I probably won't be able to finish it till afterwards; don't worry though, cuz when the hols come I'll have more time to write, and for the time being I've added not-so-subtle hints to some bits of the story. Heck, I even reveal who the trench coat guy is. The name isn't canon, but it shouldn't be too hard to guess, right...?**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Flames of Carnage**

 _Many years ago, during the Great War..._

 _"You CAN'T be serious."_

 _"I do apologise, Major Ragnas, but it has to be done. Our intel shows that the humans will reach the Southern Wall in a matter of days. We need you there."_

 _Ragnas clenched his fists. He had originally wanted to pressure Asgore, who had a reputation for giving in to demands, into letting him skip out on guard duty. He had walked into the room expecting the king to be pouring him a cup of tea, but to his utter horror and dismay, it was the queen who greeted him...with a warm smile of course. The queen was hard to deal with; stoic and firm in her commands, yet so polite and kind that you'd lose the spirit to argue. Fuzzy, sure, but she was no pushover._

 _"With all due respect, your majesty, I would gladly do as you say, but I have a...reputation...for blowing up the surrounding area when I fight. Hell, I'd probably destroy the entire Southern Wall while trying to guard it."_

 _"Be that as it may, we can't spare many more troops, what with the currently ongoing assault in the North. Your squad is the only elite unit left. You'll just have to hold back a bit, I suppose."_

 _"Well, can't I swap with someone? I can take some guy's place at the front lines; whoever takes my place will be capable enough to guard the South if they're worthy to be up at the front. I mean, I could swap with Drac's group. They never liked the front anyway."_

 _Queen Toriel regards the living flame with pity. "I'm afraid, Major, that Captain Phantasma and his Bloodspawn Corps were slaughtered when they tried an ambush in the dark. Staked the whole lot of them. With their sneak attack failing, the main army was unable to deal with the angry humans, who were seriously pissed about having to fight late at night. Now, I'm afraid there ARE no front lines."_

 _Ragnas clenched his fists hard, and gritted his teeth trying to hold his flames down. Dammit, even Drac..._

 _"...fine. I'll do it. But reinforce that wall with heatproof materials or something, or I may do more damage to it than the humans will."_

 _Just then, a loud, hearty chuckle could be heard at the doorway._

 _"Wa ha ha... I don't think that'll be necessary."_

* * *

 **Present day**

You can't defeat Ragnas.

It's common knowledge that humans are much more powerful than monsters; with enough intent to kill, a light finger flick would be able to dust a monster instantly. During the Great War, the humans' intent to kill were at their greatest; yet, there were a select few monsters, the boss monsters, who could single-handedly kill entire battalions of human soldiers. It is said that the boss monsters were the only reason the monsters put up a fight at all.

And Ragnas sure as hell was one of them.

You had realised this the moment his first strike connected with the ground. It released a great tremor that could be felt for miles around, and although you had leapt back several feet from the strike, you could feel the scorching heat from there. Aside from his sheer power, he fought with ferocity, swinging his flail so wildly and quickly that you had a hard time dodging the attacks, and he sometimes swung in a wide arc that created a residual ring of fire, as well as felling any trees he hit. Hell, he made Toriel, even with the buttercup poisoning and all, seem like a pushover. Granted though, that from Toriel's fighting style and careful planning(i.e. The pie and Napstablook), she was more of a tactician than a straight-up fighter. Ragnas definitely was a fighter.

But he was no tactician.

You're honestly surprised he hasn't worked it out by now; how the violent, aggressive human had not even attacked once, instead favouring to dodge continuously, and always in the same direction. You sneak a peak over your shoulder as you leap back from one of his attacks. Yes...soon, you'd both be in the vicinity of Snowdin Town.

And you had never met a single soul that could bear to decimate their own home.

 _Ragnas turned, and his boss was standing at the doorway, lazily leaning against the doorframe, hands resting on the hilt of his long-hilted hammer- the humans called it a "Warmaul"._

 _"General Gerson. I trust that your expedition went well?"_

 _"Hardly. Lost quite a number of good monsters out there; but we got the relic. I handed it over to the king, but a small white puppy stole it. Asgore is looking for it now."_

 _"Oh dear! I do hope fluffybu- I mean, Asgore, will be able to retrieve the artifact."_

 _Toriel flushes, and Gerson smirks._

 _"You'd better watch out, Tori; one more slip like that, and I'm gonna be calling him fluffybuns too."_

 _Toriel pouts, before pausing for a moment. Then, she laughed. "There was no dog, was there? You just wanted to make me slip up."_

 _"Wa ha ha...guilty as charged."_

 _After sharing a few more chuckles, Gerson gestured toward Ragnas. "If you don't mind, can I have a word with Major Ragnas?"_

 _"I was done with him actually; you may."_

 _Gerson nodded, and gestured for Ragnas to follow him. Ragnas stood up, and followed Gerson out of the room._

 _"Wa ha ha...guard duty eh? How confident are you of, well, NOT doing the humans' job for them?"_

 _Ragnas sighed, and Gerson laughs heartily as he slaps Ragnas on the back._

 _"Looks like you're in a tough spot. Can't go all out or the wall explodes, and can't hold back or the humans win." Gerson chuckles, shaking his head. "I've been planning on this for a while, but I think now's the best time to show you one of my little...tricks."_

"Dammit, human! Stay still, and I promise I'll make it quick!"

Ragnas was getting impatient, and his attacks were getting more ferocious by the minute. His flail was moving so fast that all you could see were red rings of fire, and the residual flames they left made it look like he had more than one flail, and it confused the hell outta you. You know you can't last much longer, and you risk a peak behind your shoulder, and you smile as you spot Snowdin. You do one last backflip into the town, and stand there, arms spread wide, inviting him to attack you. Ragnas stops in his tracks, and your smile grows ever wider as you see his look of confusion morph into one of utter horror.

"What's wrong, hot stuff? I'm right here. Come and get me."

Ragnas roars, and swings his flail at you, but abruptly pulls it back before it hits the Snowed Inn. Ragnas seethes in rage as he glares at you, but for all the ferocity in his glare, looks fail to kill you as you stare hell straight in the eye. The rage in Ragnas' eyes die out, and he sinks to his knees, morphing back into Grillby. He was completely demoralised, seemingly not noticing his transformation and the fact that he could continue fighting you in this form without damaging structures. You throw your knife upwards,and red magic envelops it as it floats in mid-air, edge aimed straight for Grillby's remaining eye.

With no warning whatsoever, a large explosion erupts from where Grillby is standing, and you leap back in surprise. Before you can register what happened, a flail flies toward you, catching you in the chin. Then, it swings about wildly, battering you all over, and before you know it you find yourself battered, burned and bruised all over, with Ragnas' hand crushing your throat. You struggle to escape his chokehold, but to no avail. How...? You had never known a human willing to destroy his hometown, let alone a monster. Then you noticed.

The buildings were unharmed.

"AHAHAHAHAH! You didn't really think that would WORK, did you? Man, I knew most monsters(italics) didn't know this, but I was sure the big bad human would be aware. Like, c'mon; didn't you find my kneel on the ground in surrender thing kinda over the top? You humans...always so full of yourselves. Always assuming that us monsters are unaware; but we know. How the battlefield can be made to say intact and unscathed after a fight, how those random brown boxes can store so many items and somehow share them among all brown boxes of the same type. All these little conveniences...you think we never noticed?"

* * *

 _"Pass me the Daybreaker, Ragnas."_

 _"Why, General?"_

 _"I want to give it a swing."_

 _"But we're in the middle of town."_

 _"Wa ha ha...exactly."_

 _Ragnas cautiously hands his flail over to the tortoise monster, and Gerson laughs as he swings it in little circles._

 _"I forgot how light these things were."_

 _"That's a hundred and fifty kilograms of pure Flaming Steel, General."_

 _"What's that in pounds, for the American readers out there?"_

 _"Ameri-what?"_

 _"What is it in pounds, Ragnas?"_

 _"About 330lbs."_

 _"Wa ha ha...let's test that out, shall we?"_

 _Before Ragnas could protest, Gerson swung the flail at a nearby building. Ragnas closed his eyes as he awaited the crash, but when it came it sounded...different._

 _"Wa ha ha...you didn't think I'd just randomly destroy a building, did you?"_

 _Ragnas cracked an eye open, and he widens both eyes at the sight he saw. The building was unharmed. Gerson swung again, and despite the loud crashes, the Daybreaker just sort of...bounced off._

 _"Buildings and structures are immortal objects, Ragnas. Hard to believe, I know, but keep it in mind and it'll work for you. Wanna give it a try?"_

 _Gerson passed the flail back to Ragnas, and the flame monster takes a deep breath, before swinging his weapon. Gerson catches the flail in mid-air._

 _"No, Ragnas- you mustn't have any doubts, or it won't work. You must know it as a fact(italics)." Gerson shakes his head, and chuckles._

 _"You have about three days before the humans arrive at the Southern Wall. Practice, and when the time comes, you'll be grateful."_

 _Gerson turns to leave, and Ragnas stares in newfound wonder of the random building._

 _"But how does it work?"_

 _Gerson pauses._

 _"Just imagine that whenever you swing your weapon, an invisible wall stops it from destroying the structures around you. The crash sound and bouncing effect is caused by the breaking of this imaginary...fourth wall."_

* * *

How? Monsters weren't supposed to know that buildings and structures were immortal objects; how did Ragnas know?

You struggle to breath as his grip tightens. First things first; you had to get out of his chokehold. You could feel his fingers crushing your demonic bones. You wouldn't last much longer. Somewhat regaining some composure, you send your knife flying downwards from its position in the air; Ragnas cries out in surprise as the blade sinks into his arm of flame. Interesting...

You grab your knife, planning to drag it along his arm, cutting it lengthwise, but to your surprise it comes loose and passes straight through a soon as your fingers curl around the handle. It seemed that your magic did more than just allow for free-hand slashing...

Time to find out what else it could do.

As Ragnas swings his flail towards you, you stretch out your hand, and the weapon is enveloped in a red aura. You swing your arm to the right, and Ragnas stumbles as his weapon suddenly shoots in the same direction. You take this chance and send your magically enhanced knife flying straight for his SOUL, but Ragnas bats it away, his body now able to interact with your knife as a solid. He throws a solarbomb at you, but you deftly sidestep the projectile. However, this cause your magic around Ragnas' flail to disperse, and he quickly swings it at you, nailing you in the chest. He attempts to follow up with a blow to the head, but your knife flies out to block the attack, and you leap backwards as you will your knife to dance with the fiery demon. After exchanging a few blows, Ragnas grabs your knife, and swings his flail at you, but you use your magic to grab hold of his weapon. Quickly assessing the area around you, you realise you're at the edge of Snowdin; the place where the werewolf usually throws ice into the river. You will both weapons to fly towards the icy rivers, but the flame monster barely manages to let go of both weapons in time before they sent him plunging down into the icy cold waters. But you aren't gonna let him recover that easily. You send your knife flying for his SOUL from behind, and as he sound around to bat it away, you secure his flail around his legs with your magic. He loses balance, and falls off the edge, barely able to grab ahold of the side of the ground with his claws.

"HUMAN! You don't really think WATER will DOUSE me, do you?" Ragnas laughs, before snarling.

"It'll take more than a little water to kill me."

"I know. But it'll also take a little more than talk to swim against a current this strong with your legs tied up as they are. Oh, and which is hotter, you or the CORE? Cuz if I recall..." Ragnas' eyes widen as what seems like a mountain of giant ice cubes float above him, enveloped in a red aura. "These were sufficient to keep the CORE cool for an entire year." And with that, you slam the mountain of ice cubes into the living flame, and the roars of rage and indignance echo as the former Major plunges into the icy waters below.

* * *

"L-look, i-it's very important, so p-please, we really n-need your help."

He sighed. As brilliant as a scientist Doctor Alphys was, she was absolutely useless with people.

"Tra la la...I shall not. I refuse to ferry you on my boat. Tra la la..."

This had been a first; although the River Person had no problem ferrying him, they had, for some reason, a strong objection against ferrying Alphys.

"B-but there's a human, a-and it uh...I mean, it will..."

He sighed, before gently placing a hand on the shy lizard's shoulder. "Don't worry Doctor Alphys, I'll take care of this." The monster in the trench coat steps forward, and clear his throat.

"Look, I know you don't wanna ferry more than one monster at a time, and that's totally cool, but this is really important, and if you're worried the boat won't be able to hold us I'd gladly walk back-"

"Tra la la...it is not your friend I have an objection to."

"So you'll ferry us?"

"Tra la la...no."

"Listen man, this is really important. If you don't ferry us back to Hotland, I'm afraid our world may be put in grave danger-"

"Not half as much of the danger you will cause by fixing the machine."

The cold, clear and commanding voice that had come from the one who spoke in song left he and Alphys stunned and speechless. Alphys had stored the machine in her dimensional box; how did the River Person know what they had, and what they were going to do?

"H-how..." Alphys began, but he was quicker. He grabbed the River Person by the cloak, and lashed out with a tongue of acid. "How do you know of the machine? No, better yet..." By now, he was all out snarling.

 _ **"Who are you?"**_

The harmless, ever helpful River Person remained unfazed at the snarling monster in front of them. Voice calm, composed and commanding at the same time, they turned to look the monster in the eye as she replied.

"I shan't stop you if you really want to fix it that much, but I will **not** aid in its restoration."

They paused.

"Beware of the man who speaks in hands."

And then she was gone.

"W-what was t-that?" Alphys was thoroughly terrified, and he wasn't entirely sure whether her stutter was out of habit, or induced by fear. Either that, or he didn't care. He didn't notice.

"M-Mike? W-what's wrong?"

The monster in the trench coat trembled. His yellow scales glistened with sweat, and the spikes on his head started to twitch in time with his left eye.

Many had always wondered about the River Person. Whether they had a gender, what species were they, did they have a family? In one moment, Mike had found the answer to two of those questions, and was willing to bet on the the answer to the last one.

The voice had been female, and the species...oh my god...those eyes...and her family...it couldn't be, right?

"Aunt Alphys...we'll need to do some digging through...'his' old documents..."

* * *

 **A/N And yeah. I'm pretty sure many of you already know who trench coat guy is, but on the off chance you haven't guessed, I won't spoil. So, who's the River Person? I have the feeling it's kinda obvious... but I have more surprises up my sleeve, so it wouldn't hurt to give you guys something to look forward to, right?**

 **Thanks for reading!**


	7. welp, looks like the title is too long

**A/N: Hey guys! I'm really sorry, but the chap came out longer than expected, so I had to split it into two...and since I promised Chara vs Sans, by today, I'm gonna try my best to finish it, but I highly doubt I'll be able too cuz my family suddenly decided to bring Mother's Day Celebrations a day earlier.**

 **In the meantime, enjoy some semi-fluff that involves no combat whatsoever. I'll make up for the lack of it next chap, promise...**

* * *

 **Title That Might Appear Before You Fight Sans**

 _...where am I?_

Light was streaming through from above, and you struggle to open your eyes against the golden light. A beautiful scent wafted in the air; you realise that you were lying on a bed of flowers. Yellow flowers- buttercups. You cautiously get up from the bed, being careful not to crush any of the fragile little plants. As you slowly stand up, you narrow your eyes as you look up towards the light. Was this what heaven looked like? After all, you had just fallen down a mountain; and when people fall down mountains, they die, right?

"Hello? Is someone there?"

A voice! Maybe it was an angel- mommy had always said that when you went to heaven, angels would be there to greet you and shower you with kisses. Maybe- maybe they would take you to see her! Just then, you hear soft, padded footsteps. Weird- didn't angels fly?

You tilt your head in confusion as the angel came into view. This was a weird looking angel- it had floppy ears, and was covered in white fur. And- it was small, around your height.

"Why are you so tiny? Mommy said angels were big people." You say, pointing at the angel accusingly. The weird-looking angel winces.

"H-hey, it's not my fault I'm small! And my mommy said the angel doesn't have to be big; they'll come from above, and no matter how small they are, they'll set us free! In fact, I thought you were the angel; you don't look like any of the monsters down here."

Monsters?

Oh.

 _Oh._

You leap back, but you stumble and fall on your bum. You scramble backwards, holding your arms in front of you. Monsters. You weren't in heaven; you had survived the fall. You had fallen into Mount Ebbot. You had fallen into the land of monsters. When you think about it, it was ironic; you were in a state of bliss thinking you were dead, but now you were scared for your life cuz you were sure the monster would kill you. Reasonably though- monsters had the power to take your SOUL, and mommy said that when you died, it was your SOUL that went to heaven. So if it took your SOUL, you wouldn't see heaven ... _and you wouldn't see mommy..._

Now it's the monster's turn to tilt it's head in curiosity. "What are you doing?"

"P-please don't hurt me mister monster! I-I'm sorry if I offended you-"

"Nah, it's fine...my mommy said that I'll be bigger when I grow up, so it's okay if I'm small now! When I grow up, I wanna be big and strong like daddy- then when the angel comes, I'll be strong enough to lift daddy's special teapot! Then, I'll pour it a cup of tea, and I won't spill a single drop!"

You lower your arms, and crack an eye open. The monster didn't seem scary- the people in your village said the scary monsters were covered in flames, and held chains with a big, flaming spiked ball attached to the end. This one didn't have any of those things- now that you looked at it a bit closer, it looked like a small goat.

"Oh! Where are my manners... mommy said it's common courtesy to introduce yourself when you meet a new friend." It was wearing a green and yellow striped shirt, and it had a big smile on it's face. You flinch as it extends a hand, but it doesn't seem to notice.

"My name is Asriel Dreemur. What's your name?"

You allow yourself to relax a bit, some of the initial tension fading from your muscles. After all, it had good manners, and anyone with good manners was a good person, right? This monster wasn't scary—maybe the people in your village were talking about _different_ monsters. The people there also said goats were...what was that word? Say-cred? Well, they said goats were harmless, so this goat monster couldn't be too scary could it?

You accept the monster's hand, and he helps you up. You brush the dirt off your jumpers, but stop as you notice the monster staring at you expectantly. Oh right, your name. What was your name again? You couldn't seem to remember, and you frown as you tilt your head to the side, finger on your chin, trying hard to remember. Err...Char-lotte? Char-lie? Your face scrunches up as you try to recall. The goat boy, Asriel, scratches his head awkwardly.

"Uh... it's okay if you can't remember ...or don't want to tell me?"

You shake your head and give him a big smile. "No, it's fine, I can tell you my name."

You didn't want him to think that you didn't want to tell him your name—that would be unfriendly. But what was it...? Well, both of them had 'char' in them, so...

You extend a hand. The goat boy shakes it, and you tell him your new name.

"My name i ..."

* * *

Your eyes snap open, quickly darting around the room,assessing your surroundings. You were in what seemed like a kid's bedroom; the walls were painted bright orange, and there was a whole table full of action figures to your left. You were in a bed which, you noticed, resembled a bright red sports car. A half empty box of bones sat in a corner near the door. Bones...

"I DON'T SEE WHAT THE FUSS IS ALL ABOUT, SANS. THE HUMAN HAS BEEN NICE, AND YOU AGREED TO LET IT STAY OVER, SO WHY PREPARE ALL THESE ATTACKS?"

Your eyes widen in panic. You were in the skeleton brothers' house. _Sans' house._

"well bro, humans are known to be a little grumpy when they get up, and being in someone else's room when they do only makes them lash out at things in confusion. if the human doesn't attack, then we won't have to use these bones."

And Sans was just outside, ready to kill you.

You frantically put a hand on your pocket, and you sigh in relief as you feel the bump in the fabric. Your knife was still there. Funny how Sans would allow you to keep your knife; Papyrus must've prevented him from getting a hold of it.

You silently thank the tall, goofy skeleton as you get out of bed. Or at least, you try to; for some reason you were wrapped up in at least ten blankets, and as soon as you manage to wiggle free and try to stand up, your legs buckle beneath you and you cry out as you fall. As you fall to the ground with a loud thud, you hear the doorknob turn and the hinges creak, but not before a strange, yet familiar chilly sensation shivers down your spine.

"HUMAN! IT LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE AWAKE! HOW CONVENIENT! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WAS JUST ABOUT TO MAKE SOME OF MY FAMOUS SPAGHETTI!"

You cringe. Damn that skeleton was loud.

"SANS SAID THAT YOU LOVED THE SPAGHETTI I MADE SO MUCH, YOU WALKED STRAIGHT THROUGH A PUZZLE JUST TO GET MORE! ALTHOUGH I DO NOT APPROVE OF YOUR METHODS, HUMAN, THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS FLATTERED THAT YOU WOULD ENJOY MY COOKING SO MUCH AS TO SKIP A PUZZLE AS MAGNIFICENT AS ONE MADE BY THE GREAT DOCTOR ALPHYS. I GUESS THIS JUST GOES TO SHOW HOW GREAT MY SPAGHETTI IS! NYEH HEH HEH!"

You eye Sans quizzically, and he shrugs while (somehow) mouthing 'go along with it'.

"Uh, sure p-paps. I uh...I...how did I g-get here?"

Dammit- you would be lying if you said you weren't confused, but your stutter was a bit much; for some reason, your tongue was numb, and you found it difficult to articulate your words properly. Actually, now that you thought about it, your entire body was aching and numb. What the hell happened to you?

"YOU WERE PASSED OUT ON THE SNOW NEXT TO THE RIVER, HUMAN. SANS TOLD ME YOU WERE HAVING A NAP AND WE SHOULD LEAVE YOU ALONE, BUT I KNEW SOMETHING WAS WRONG. SO I BROUGHT YOU HOME, AND THE HOT OR COLD STICK SAID YOU WERE COLD, SO I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, TUCKED YOU IN WITH ALL OF OUR BLANKETS! NYEH HEH HEH... THE SMELLY ONES BELONG TO SANS. AS YOU CAN SEE, MY STANDARDS ARE ALWAYS KEPT HIGH!"

"Hot or cold stick?"

"he means a thermometer."

"YES! WHY WOULD A PAIR OF SKELETONS HAVE A TERMOMINATOR, YOU MAY ASK? WELL, THE GREAT PAPYRUS' FORESIGHT KNOWS NO BOUNDS! NYEH HEH HEH..."

You almost feel guilty for what was to come; Sans had never forced you into playing along before, and as a result, you had never truly experienced the tall skeleton's childish innocence. Yep, you almost feel guilty. Almost.

"hey, d'you smell something burning?"

"NO, I DON'T. WE DON'T HAVE NOSES, SANS."

"we don't have ears either, but we can hear, can't we?"

"YOU CAN'T FOOL ME, SANS! THE GREAT PAPYR—WAIT, YOU'RE RIGHT. WE DON'T HAVE TONGUES EITHER...OR MUSCLES...WAIT, SO HOW ARE WE DOING EVERYTHING? IF I DON'T HAVE VOCAL CHORDS, HOW AM I TALKING RIGHT NOW? IF I DON'T HAVE A BRAIN, HOW AM I THINKING ABOUT THIS? NYEH! THIS PUZZLE HAS STUMPED THE GREAT PAPYRUS!"

At this point Papyrus was grabbing his skull in confusion, eyes wide as saucers as he faced an existential crisis. Sans winks.

" _eye_ think it's magic. It _nose_ when there's something we should sense, and sends the signals to our SOULS, right _ear_." Sans taps his chest. "Did I _nail_ the explanation? Otherwise, my efforts would be in _vein_."

"SAAAAAANS!"

"aww c'mon paps, you know you love 'em at _heart_. i would never have the _nerve_ to keep shoving these puns down your _throat_ if they really got under your _skin_."

"THAT'S IT! I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR RIDICULOUS PUNS! YOU SHOULD'VE STOPPED AFTER THE WORD 'MAGIC'."

Completely ignoring the seething skeleton, who was now stamping his feet on the ground repeatedly, Sans shrugs.

"sorry paps. i was just tryna _flesh_ things out."

"AAAAAAARGH! THAT'S IT SANS, I'M DISOWNING YOU. I SHOULD'VE KNOWN THAT YOU WERE GOING TO START PUNNING WHEN YOU ALERTED ME ABOUT THE BURNING SMELL."

"Actually... I smell something burning too." You add helpfully.

Papyrus stops his tantrum as he sniffs the air. Then, with an agonized 'NYEH!', he bursts out of the room. Sans chuckles.

"see paps? i was right. things like that don't get _pasta_ me."

You can't help but snigger a little at the pun, but it's really the loud "SANS, I SWEAR I WILL KILL YOU!" from the kitchen that cracks you up. You actually laugh- the sound surprisingly melodious and charming. _Just like hers._ Your smile vanishes as you complete the thought. Strange— you had thought that _she_ was a long gone memory, hidden at the darkest depths of your mind. The hairs on the back of your neck stand on end as you notice Sans eyeing you with interest.

"so soulless demons have a sense of humour too. who would've guessed? although, i suppose i _am_ pretty _humerus_."

You don't laugh.

Sans sighs. "welp, it was nice while it lasted. when you laughed, i really thought that there might've been a friend in you. i've always hoped that we could be buds, y'know."

You scowl. "That's not what it sounded like in Snowdin Forest."

"yeah, but that's cuz you were killing things."

"And I haven't stopped killing since then. What made you change your mind?"

Sans shakes his head, shrugging. "i suppose it's cuz of paps. You _did_ go along with some puzzles, and since i said that to you in the forest you hadn't exactly attacked anyone; to be fair, grillby and the dogs hit first. when we found you out cold in the snow, i was actually considering finishing you off there and then, but paps insisted on 'capturing' you. i was gonna come up with another excuse as to leaving you there so i could kill you, but that look in his eyes...he believes in you. he thinks you're a nice, puzzle-loving spaghetti fanatic like him, and i guess i just couldn't bring myself to say no." Sans chuckles, before his eyes black out. "and you'd better not let the both of us down."

Just then, a ringing sound abruptly emanates from Sans' pocket. Upon swing the caller ID, he hurriedly turns away from you, and answers.

"hey. what's up? uhuh...uhuh...oh, _really_ now? hmm...interesting. but uh, d'you mind if i head over a little later? hmm...alright...if you're sure. see ya there, Alph."

Alph? Was Sans talking to Alphys? Strange...you never knew they were associated. You vaguely remember Alphys acknowledging that she knew Sans back before you took Frisk's SOUL—

 _"Doesn't everybody know Sans?"_

...hmm. Fishy. Alphys was a bad liar, and that was a bad lie if you've ever heard one. Alphys had called Sans... And told him something 'interesting'...

Somehow, you have a bad feeling about this.

"hey kid; i'll have to go somewhere for a while, so uh— take care of paps while i'm gone, alright?"

You so called it.

"Yeah, uh, sure—I know the stakes."

Sans's grin grows wider, and he walks past you towards the door. When he's right beside you, he stops, and ruffles your hair.

 _ **"good little demon."**_

And he was gone.

* * *

"NYEH! A GENUINE COMPLIMENT!"

You giggle as the tall skeleton stiffens, eyes threatening to bog straight out of his skull. Apparently a human's praise on human cuisine was a big deal to him, even if it was along the lines of "good job paps, soon it'll be edible!"

Shortly after Sans had left, there had been a loud clattering from the kitchen. You had rushed outside to find Papyrus, wearing a pink apron that said 'DON'T NOOGIE THE CHEF', awkwardly sitting on the floor with a large pot of spaghetti on his head, and what could only be described as noodle sludge all over the floor.

The two of you had been making spaghetti for the past hour or so—or rather, you had been making spaghetti. The only thing the tall skeleton had made was a mess, and you couldn't help but wonder who would teach the poor, naive skeleton to soften the noodles faster by mashing them over and over with a large bone.

"OKAY HUMAN, AS I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE DECIDED TO SAVE THE REST OF MY SPAGHETTI FOR DINNER, IT'S TIME TO TRY YOUR SPAGHETTI!" Papyrus, who had snapped out of his trance, quickly grabbed a large fork—so large that you nearly mistook it for a pitchfork—and scooped two giant servings of spaghetti from your pot into two large plates. Or rather, that's what he tried to do, but most of the noodles slipped through the abnormally large prongs of the abnormally large utensil.

"Here paps, try this." you say, offering the skeleton a regular sized fork.

"NYEH...BUT THAT FORK IS NOT AS GREAT..."

"Oh, great Papyrus, only your great spaghetti is worthy of being served with your great fork. My lowly spaghetti will shrivel in the presence of such great cutlery; please, accept my humble offering of this plain, not-so-great fork."

"NYEH! ANOTHER GENUINE COMPLIMENT!"

You chuckle. Had Papyrus always been this childish and contagiously happy? You had never spent so much time with him before—in fact, you were starting to enjoy his company. While Papyrus continues staring into space with his eyes bugging out, you twirl your spaghetti around your fork, before stuffing it into your mouth. The noodles were a little bit too chewy, but the sauce you made was heavenly. You smile in your bliss. It had been a long time since you cooked anything, but it seems like you never lost your touch. You still remember the tiny toddler you were back then, having to stand on a stool to reach the counter, your mother standing behind you, holding your arms, praising you for the most mundane of tasks like putting the noddles in the pot...

 _Your mother._

Your smile fades, replaced with a frown. Why could you remember her? In all your previous runs, the memories had been tightly locked away. In fact... you had had a dream too, didn't you? You couldn't quite recall what it was about, but you were 90% sure that it was something you hadn't remembered in a while. Why were these memories resurfacing? Your frown deepens into a scowl. Fuck all that! That... that was a long time ago, and that toddler on the stool was no more. You're _Chara_ goddamnit, Chara, the demon who answers when it's name is called!

Your previous life... was nothing more than a memory...

"NYEH! THIS SPAGHETTI... IT'S ALMOST AS GREAT AS MINE! HUMAN! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE COME TO A DECISION! SEEING AS YOUR SPAGHETTI MAKING SKILLS ARE NEARLY A GREAT AS MINE, THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS DECIDED TO BESTOW UPON YOU THE HONOUR OF BEING MY STUDENT! NYEH HEH HEH!"

You jerk your head up and snarl at the skeleton, who abruptly stops his delightful 'NYEH HEH HEH's. He dared to call you human? He dared to make you his STUDENT?

"H-HUMAN? IS... IS SOMETHING THE MATTER?"

It was him—he caused it—it was his fault that—

He DARED to make you HAPPY?

With a snarl, you jump onto the table and stab Papyrus in the eye socket with your fork. He seems unhurt, what with his lack of eyeballs and all, but he draws back with a gasp. You grab him by the scarf, and in one swift motion, pull out and slash him with your knife. But somehow, your blade didn't cut his neck like you had planned it to; you had somehow missed, slicing a gaping hole in the tall skeleton's scarf instead. Papyrus gasps in dismay.

"HUMAN... WHAT ARE YOU—"

But you don't hear the rest, as a horrible chill goes down your spine. An all too familiar voice, although at least ten times softer than Papyrus', rings as clearly and deeply as you remembered it, back in the golden hall of judgement...

 _ **"i hope you like shortcuts."**_

* * *

 _ **A/N: I'll do my best to get it up by tomorrow, and exams are over so latest will be...uh...I dunno.**_

 _ **Next time: More drama! More romance! More bloodshed! And I lied about romance!**_


	8. Author's Note

**Author's Notice**

* * *

 **Hey! Guys! I'm! So! Sorry! But the next chap isn't up yet!**

 **Truth to be told, I had originally more or less finished writing, but since I've kept you guys waiting I figured hey, we all want a good chapter, right? So while I was reading through what I wrote, I copied and pasted some good bits before I went to rewrite majority of the chap.**

 **So far I've written enough for a regular chapter, but this one is coming out longer than I thought. Way longer. And really, although I could technically give you guys an update, once again it'd be some pre-fight dialogue. So no. I'll finish writing the fight, and I'll post the whole thing up as one long chapter.**

 **I know you guys are probably kinda disappointed that it's taking so long, but I decided it's best to forsake speed for quality, although I'm not entirely sure whether it'll be as good as I hope. I've had writer's block for the past week, and it was only yesterday when I actually wrote some shizz that I was satisfied with. I'm still not entirely sure when this chapter will be out, but I thought I'd just let you guys know that I'm not, like, MIA. I hope that I won't take so long for other chapters, but I really do feel that I may be taking longer to upload in the near future, as I'm planning to write longer and (hopefully) better chapters.**

 **Quite aside from that, I would like to ask you guys about some things.**

 **A) Would you guys like a review response section? I've been responding to some reviews by reviewing my own fic, but since not everyone reads reviews I think that it'd be nice to have a section in the actual chapters where I respond to reviews, cuz some are really interesting. Of course, I won't respond to all reviews, as a)I may not be able to think of an answer and b)The answer may contain spoilers ;)**

 **B) This is less of an opinion thing and more of a favour; does anybody have like, a copyright-free place where I can get undertale art? Cuz that lack of a display pic on this story kinda pisses me off...and I don't actually know how to get permission from artists(or really, I might just lack the guts to ask) since I'm like, 14. Hell I'm still not entirely sure what are the full powers of this site. I spend most of my time reading and writing fanfiction on my phone, which gives me limited access to all this site's features till I use the com, which I don't use very often.**

 **And... that's all actually. I'm kinda new to all of this, and I only mustered up the will to write this after actually talking to some authors on this site. And really, it's your reviews, follows and favourites that keep me going. I'm not entirely sure when, but in some point of my life I got really afraid of people judging me, and now that I actually made this one story floating around in my mind public, I guess I'm just really glad you guys like it. A quick shout out to just a few people who have kept me going with your reviews;Bookman Old Style, TheTrueName, EmpoleonNerd, FleksAndru, TK and ah screw it I love all of you! And of course my two irl friends reading this. You know who you are.**

 **Well, I guess it's bye for now! I'll be sure to update ASAP, so do check in every once in a while!**

 **~Ace**


	9. MEGALOVANIA

**AAAAAAND IT'S FINALLY HERE! Hopefully this meets your expectations, cuz it sure as hell met mine! Except for the last bit tho, kinda rushed that cuz it's really late and my parents don't know I'm still up, so... hehehe. Anyhow, enjoooooy!**

* * *

 **Megalovania**

You stumble, barely managing to stop yourself from falling forward into the snow. Then you lose your balance once more, collapsing onto your hands and knees, and throw up in the powder white snow. What the hell just happened? One moment you were standing on a table, and the next you were at the place where you threw Ragnas into the river. How did you get here? And why was your stomach... ugh...

"you alright kid? it's not _cool_ to _throw up_ the chance of having a little fun, is it?"

You spit the last bit of regurgitated spaghetti into the snow, before looking up to glare at Sans. From your position on the ground, the skeleton towered over you. Right hand in his pocket, he held a bottle of ketchup in his left. The bottle wasn't one of those squirty ones made of red plastic though; it was made of solid glass, with fancy cursive words that seemed strangely alien in the hands of the unkept skeleton. He regards you for a moment, his hood casting a shadow over his eyes. Slowly, he raises the bottle of ketchup, and pours it's contents into his open mouth. No gulping. No pausing. No shaking of the bottle to allow the thick condiment to fall from the bottle faster. He just stands there, motionless, silently chugging down his favourite food. You stare at him in silence, half in confusion and half in trying to forget what the spaghetti sauce looked like when you threw it up.

The last drop of ketchup falls into the skeleton's mouth. But Sans remains motionless. A small dollop of ketchup runs down his cheek, slowly running down to his collar, staining his white undershirt with dark red. Then, he throws the fancy glass bottle behind him, where it lands in the snow with a soft 'poff' sound. Sans then begins to chuckle.

"that was the last bottle."

Sans' chuckles escalate into uncontrolled laughter; dark, humourless, laughter.

 _"that was the last bottle."_

You slowly stand up, eyeing the skeleton with caution. You steal a glance at the bottle, half buried in the snow behind him. You were never good at reading cursive, but after squinting at the bottle long enough, you got the joke.

Just above the snow, one fancy cursive word could be seen on the glass bottle.

 _Grillby's_

You look back at Sans. Only his grin could be seen under the shadow of his hood, but you could feel it— his cold, empty eyes, just staring into your SOUL.

"i— i had hoped. i had hoped that maybe, just maybe, we could be friends this time. in those other timelines, it was hard; you never even replied to the things we said, completely ignoring anything that didn't help you reach your ultimate goal of killing every single monster in the underground."

The skeleton takes a step towards you.

"but this time—this time you responded. you talked; you listened. you even showed fear when I jumped you outside the RUINS. you were a bad human, that's for sure, killing for the heck of it; but at least you _were_ human. your SOUL—it wasn't an empty shell where you drew power from. it was, well, a soul. the very culmination of your being. a being that could _feel_."

Sans takes another step.

"but now... you're starting back on that path. somehow, your SOUL rejected the happiness you were feeling. and in so doing, it went along to reject every single positive feeling you had. this dark, dark path...it starts with anger, rage... hatred. and after all that is spent—emptiness." Sans chuckles. "trust me, kid—i know from experience."

You slowly get to your feet, swaying as you do so. Your stomach still felt like the inside of a cement mixer, churning and turning full rotations, threatening to empty it's remaining contents. But you didn't care.

"Know from experience, eh? Then riddle me this, smiley bones; what does it feel like to be betrayed by your only kin? What does it feel like to lose your SOUL? What does it feel like to know that the only thing keeping you alive is the SOUL of a random kid who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time?!" By now you were screaming. "What does it feel like to _not feel?!_ "

With wild, bloodshot eyes, you stared at the skeleton, daring him to say he understood. He didn't. He didn't understand. He _couldn't_ understand. Your ragged breath increases with each thought. _No one could understand..._

Voice deep, cold and emotionless, Sans replies.

"i dunno. you tell me."

You open your mouth to scream at him, to scream your sorrow out to a bonehead who just didn't understand. To show him how much he didn't know. But... you couldn't find the words to describe it. You try to search within yourself for a way to describe the emptiness you were feeling. But you couldn't.

"just as i thought."

Sans begins walking towards you, hands in his pockets, hood shading his eyes. Step by step, he walks forward. Slowly. _Torturously._ You don't know why, but the way he moves as if he wasn't shaken by your outburst, as if he actually _understood_ what you were talking about... it pisses you off.

"you don't know the feeling either. sure, you experienced it back then, in all those other timelines where i faced you in the judgement hall. but now... you have the capacity to feel. you're no longer empty. if you truly were empty, you wouldn't even be able to _care_ about being empty."

Sans stops.

"but now you _can_ care. you _can_ feel. and you'll never have to stop caring and feeling, if you just stop killing my friends, i... i PROMISE... you'll never feel empty again. it's not too late."

 ***Sans is sparing you.**

 _Sans_ is _sparing_ you.

The realisation hits you like a truck. A very large orange and black truck with the word "MERCY" written all over it. Sans is... what? This... this is another trick, right? You... you're not falling for that again! Yes, it's a trick! He was gonna impale you on bones again, and kill you over, and over, and over... and over...

Sans takes a hand out of his pocket, and extends it forward.

"here, kid... shake my hand."

 ***Sans is sparing you.**

It was a trick! When you go to shake his hand, he's gonna turn you blue, and...

That was his right hand. Sans was left handed, and he never casted magic with his right before. But it could be a trick! Maybe that's what he _wants_ you to think, so that he can catch you off guard, and...

You take a step forward.

What was this feeling? It was... nice, but yet you somehow felt _wrong_ for feeling this way.

You take another step forward, then another, and yet Sans still made no move to attack you. This had to be a dream, right? Sans _knows what you are._ He knows what you've done. And he's the one being on the entire underground who ever came close to stopping you. And now, he's sparing you. You're sure it's a trick, yet... you just _want to believe him._ Was this... hope?

This is it. You're standing directly in front of your mortal enemy, and he makes no move to attack you. He eye his extended hand. Then, slowly, you extend a shaking hand forward...

An arc of silver. A flash of red. And you stood there, knife in the air, standing before the wide-eyed skeleton, whose shirt was stained with a diagonal gash of blood—or ketchup—that extended all the way from his right hip to left shoulder.

Wordlessly, Sans falls backward into the snow, landing with his behind on the soft snow, clutching his wound. He coughs, staining the ground in front of him with red. Then, he chuckles.

"hehehe... welp, it was worth a shot... sorry old lady, queen or no, I just can't keep a promise..."

And with that, the skeleton fell backwards.

 _ **You didn't deserve to hope.**_

Suddenly, you are enveloped in a blue glow as you fly backwards. You crash into a tree, knocking the breath out of you, before several bones shoot out from it's trunk, impaling you.

"you didn't really think that would work, did you?"

You look up in shock at the skeleton in front of you. How...? He hadn't dodged it, you felt your knife pass through his body...!

Yet Sans stood in front of you, arms spread wide, hands glowing with a blue aura. The red gash still across his chest.

For a few moments, time seems to slow down.

A frigid wind blows through the area.

"it's a beautiful day, isn't it?"

 _The room gets chiller._

Sneaker-clad skeletal feet step forward in the snow.

"birds are singing, flowers are blooming..."

 _You feel your sins crawling on your back._

Sans' jacket spreads out behind him.

"on days like this..."

 _You're going to have a bad time._

The hood lifts a little, allowing you to catch a glimpse of an empty right socket and a glowing blue and yellow eye.

"kids like you..."

 _You brace yourself, taking a deep breath of the cold, wintry air..._

 **"should be burning in hell."**

 _...of MEGALOVANIA._

A blue aura surrounds you once more, and a quick flick of the hand rips your flesh from the bones that had impaled it, before Sans sends you sprawling onto the ground. You instinctively spring upwards, narrowly avoiding a bed of bones that shoots up beneath you. Your body is then frozen in mid-air, and two giant ice cubes float out from the magical ice-producing shed with the conveyor belt.

"hehehe... y'know kiddo, we really could've had smashing(italics) times together, if we only had had enough time to _break the ice_."

Sans then claps his hands together, smashing the ice cubes into you so hard that they shatter, before a beam of white-hot energy blasts your suspended body.

"y'know, i'm not all that surprised that you'd deny my offer. in fact, i might say that i'm actually kinda _relieved._ don't get me wrong, i was completely sincere about burying the hatchet, but well... we can both agree it's a pretty big hatchet, can't we kid? even if you accepted my mercy, i doubt we'd ever become the pals i wish we could be."

You leap away as another blaster fires, and only barely manage to stop yourself in time before you were impaled on yet another set of impossibly sharp bones.

"and yeah, i bet you're thinking 'what a load of bull, this was clearly another trap', but really, i just hoped that you would be kinda sick of fighting me again, cuz i sure as hell am. fortunately, this'll be the last time we do this song and dance, won't it?"

"How in _seven fucking hells_ are you still alive?!"

In reply, a bunch of bones shoot out from behind and in front of you, impaling you both ways.

"i dunno, how are you?"

With the two sets of bones holding you in place, five Gaster Blasters surround you, before firing simultaneously. You grit your teeth as you feel the karma flowing through your veins.

"Determination!"

"well, yeah, but not that. determination is what keeps you from dying permanently, but what really quantifies how close you are to death?"

The Blasters finish firing, and you take the chance to break a few of the bones impaling you, before hurling them at the Blasters, destroying them. You grimace at the sight of your HP bar. Getting hit by that many Blasters at once was eating away at your HP pretty fast...

"you see that? that's what's keeping you alive. HP, or HoPe, represents what you look forward to, what you are fighting for, and this how much you are willing to hold on to life. as your LOVE increases, you know you're less likely to die; thus, your HoPe increases too. in battle, the more damage you take, the more you convince yourself that your body can take no more, the more HoPe you lose. when you reach zero HoPe, you give up, and your SOUL breaks apart. determination is more of a failsafe, kicking on when you run out of HoPe, but are just too stubborn to truly give in."

"So you're telling me you _hope_ to defeat me this time? Well, here's some news smiley bones; I'll just reset each time you beat me, so how about you stop hoping and just DIE!"

You whip out your knife and burst towards the skeleton, swiping at him, but he dodges. You follow up with a swift kick to his abdomen, but a bunch of bones shoot up from the ground, impaling your foreleg. Unperturbed, you place your other foot at the base of the bones, snapping them and launching the bones at Sans, who stops them mid-air with a wave of his hand, before willing them to form a shield as you lash out with your knife.

"look, kid, i know you're made of LOVE and all..."

On your last downward slash, Sans moves the bones shielding him out of the way, catching your arm with his own.

"but i think i'm stronger than you."

Unable to process what happens on time, a loud snap can be heard as Sans gives a sudden jerk to your arm. You scream in agony, but Sans doesn't wait for you to finish, clenching his left hand into a fist and stabbing the bones of his former bone shield into your body. Using his magic, Sans turns you around, and slams you face first into a tree, driving the bones deeper into your flesh. Groaning, you fall backwards into the snow, only to find yourself staring into the eyes of a giant, horrendous floating goat skull, which opens it's jaws to unleash beam after beam of energy straight at your face.

"hehehe... what's wrong, kiddo? you're lookin a bit _under the weather._ and from what i see, today's weather is cloudy..."

A dark shadow formed above you, and you scramble upright, wincing as you do so, before narrowly avoiding a bone that falls from the sky, stabbing itself into the ground.

"...with a chance of bones."

The shadow above you disperses into many, many smaller shadows, before they start to fall down towards the earth. Thinking quick, you use your own magic, seizing control of all the bones, stopping them in mid-air and turning them towards Sans.

"DIE!"

With a quick flick of your hand, the bones fly towards Sans, but just before they hit him, your red aura around the bones vanishes, replaced by his blue one. Sans' smile grows wider, before the bones explode into a thousand pieces of white shrapnel. Shoving his hands into his pockets, a dozen Gaster Blasters appear behind you. You're surrounded.

"see you in hell."

And with that, the wall of bone shrapnel flies towards you as the Blasters fire simultaneously. An earth-shattering scream bursts it's way out of your lungs as the karma in your veins rips and twists at your very soul, burning your mind and body with it.

And finally, it stops.

The pain dies away, but so does sensation. Your entire body seems to cease functioning, and you collapse onto your knees, before falling forwards into the snow.

And you lay there, still.

HP: 1/99

But alive.

"heh... i always knew you were _determined_ , kid, but this is a bit much, dontcha think? oh well... guess this is what happens to someone as determined as you when they lose the ability to reset, huh?"

A jolt is sent through your body, and you look up, glaring at the skeleton, in contempt and shock.

"How... how did you...?"

"what didja think i went over to alphys' for? well, technically when she asked me over, she had only found that this was your first run in a timeline anywhere near this one, but after a little bit of digging..."

Sans starts to chuckle.

"hehehe... do you... hehehehehe... do you know how much HoPe this gives me? the mere prospect of having a permanent happy ending, going to the surface with all my friends... and papyrus...hehehehehehe... after living your entire life countless times, all the way with the knowledge that nothing you do matters, with the knowledge that everything you ever worked for will be erased... do you KNOW how much this MEANS to me? Hehehehehe... after all I've been through...HEHEHEHEHE... after ALL I've been through... hell, I'm even using caps now... Hehehe...HAHAHAHAHA! After all those timelines, I can finally, FINALLY wipe you off the face of this world..."

An absurdly big Gaster Blaster appears above you, and it's jaws unhinge, giving you full view off the brilliant orb of white energy forming inside the gaping abyss.

"...once and for all."

You struggle to stand, but collapse to the ground, unable to muster up the strength to move your muscles. The sound of the white orb growing and growing, the sound of it getting ready to discharge... was this how it was going to end? You, the great demon Chara, being eliminated once and for all... by a skeleton who had finally dared to hope.

No.

Even if you were going to go down, you aren't going to go down to some... hope.

"Wait."

Something about the tone of your voice rings clear and menacingly, and you feel the skeleton tense up. The white orb stops growing.

"what is it, kid? you'd better hurry, i gotta get back home before my spaghetti gets cold."

Shakily, you stand up, and clutch at the first thing that you find in your palm. Incidentally, it's your locket.

"Hahaha... spaghetti, eh? What if I told you that with one press of a button, there will _be no spaghetti_ waiting for you at home?"

In a flash, Sans is standing before you, holding you by your jacket collar, Blaster still angled towards you.

"What did you do?!"

You force out your most sadistic laugh, hoping it sounds real enough to fool the former scientist. "What did you think I did back at your house for, like, an hour?" You smirk, and tap at your locket. "All I have to do, is will it—and the explosives I set up in your house will be triggered, and boom! No more house. Boom! No more spaghetti. And boom... _no more Papyrus_."

The bony grip on your jacket tightens. "You lay one FUCKING hand on my brother, and I swear I'll..."

"Oh, how very sad, won't it be? In the instant you take to fire that blaster, I can trigger the explosives. So you can have your _permanent_ happy ending, going to the surface with your friends... _but no Papyrus_."

"NO!" Sans shouts, and pushes you onto the ground, sitting atop of you, hands still on your jacket. You notice the Blaster behind him start to waver, the white orb of light in it's maw shrinking.

"It's your choice Sans! You can kill me now; I won't be _able_ to stop you. But you do that, you _lose your brother_ _ **forever**_."

"NO!"

With one swift movement, you shove Sans off of you, and reverse your positions, before the bones on his body give way to dust as your unholy knife slices through them.

Ketchup flies everywhere, and the blaster threatening you just moments before disappears in a flash of white as it's master dissolves into dust.

With one act, you had crushed all of Sans' hopes for the future. With one attack, you had ended the possibility of any future for Sans at all.

"hehehe... you got me good kid. there... was no bomb, was there?"

You're surprised the skeleton can still speak; he was dusting pretty fast, and practically the entire lower half of his body had dissolved into dust, blending into the snow around him. It almost looked as if he was... melting.

"hehehehe... y'know, I guess it's better this way. after all, i've just realised... why i lost,"

Suddenly, the half-dissolved skeleton grabs your jacket, and pulls you down to his eye level.

 _ **"we've already won."**_

And with one final chuckle, the lazy, pun-loving comedian sinks to the ground, before exploding into dust,

* * *

"Why didn't you tell him?"

"Tell him what?"

"C'mon, Aunt Alphys, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Why didn't you tell him?"

Alphys sighed. Well, to be fair, she had told Mike—and herself—that she'd call Sans over to tell him the truth about... well...

She couldn't bear to even think about it. Like, what were the chances? How would Sans react?

"It's better this way, Mike; he probably never wanted to know. Regardless, he didn't need to. Sans died happy."

"He died happy alright, but what if he could've been happier? All his life, he thought she had left. If he were to be allowed a chance to talk to her before his final showdown, then maybe..."

"Mike, please. While I do not deny that it is a possibility, I know Sans. He tends to run away from things; he'd probably be pretty flustered and confused, but I doubt he would've cared to see her much."

"That's were you're wrong. I haven't been aquatinted with Sans for as long as you have, but look at him during that fight; does that look like someone who wouldn't care? The knowledge of resets broke him, but after finding out that the human had lost the ability to do so... he would've loved to hear the news, Aunt Alphys. He would've been so happy... and even more hopeful than he was before he—dammit Alphys, look at me!"

Before she could react, Mike grabbed Alphys by the shoulders, and looked her in the eye.

"It's because you were _scared_ to tell him... that he couldn't tie up the final loose end in his life."

Alphys looked down, refusing to meet her nephew's gaze. He was right. She had been afraid. She had always been afraid. But c'mon, this was big news—she wouldn't be the only one who would have trouble finding the courage to reveal it, and to Sans no less. Hell, she might even say that she'd rather confess to Undyne than tell Sans about—

"HEYA NERDS! Have any of ya seen Papyrus anywhere? I've been lookin for him everywhere and I still can't... oh... uh... am I interrupting something here?"

Alphys took a moment to register what she meant, before realizing that Mike still had his arms on her shoulders.

"N-no! I-it's not what it looks like!"

The fish-lady smirked. "Oh, you _sure_ about that now?"

Alphys desperately looked at her nephew for help, but the male lizard simply raised his eyebrows and smiled.

Well... she was gonna have a _lot_ of explaining to do.


	10. Interlude: Watching

**A/N: Yeah, I know, sad excuse for a chapter when I haven't posted in like, ages. But well... let's just say the holidays were much busier than I thought.**

 **Side note, my parents have been getting on me about school, so I guess more studying= less writing? Unless I like, write in Chinese or something, I'm pretty sure my revision isn't gonna be doubling as writing practice... so... yeah... but on the bright side, my writer's block seems to be vanishing(although it's there like, 69% of the time...), so if school is kind, I'll get to write more...?**

* * *

 **Interlude: Watching**

Watching.

I've been watching. Watching as the demon slaughtered my people, watching as it dusted my kin, again and again. All these years... I've been watching. But I always had this feeling, this feeling as if I was missing one very crucial detail.

And without that detail, I was never truly able to do what my kin had tried to.

Sure, many had praised me for my help in evacuation; but even as I ferried folks from place to place, hoping to evade the demon, I _knew_ —I knew it would find us anyway.

And yet I stayed quiet, continuing to evacuate the innocent when I should have been fighting.

However, this has given me invaluable time to study the demon's very nature.

This was one thing that I comforted myself with; the fact that I wasn't idly watching while the demon destroyed everything, but rather that I was _studying_ it. After all, I was one of the only monsters in the underground who was learned in demonology.

My earliest works as a scientist were actually studies on human culture. It was I who deduced that "anime", which most others found to be cartoons of purely entertainment purposes, actually contained treasure troves of information of the modern day human, provided one knew how to separate fictional creations to those the humans actually used in real life. For instance, it was anime that first gave monster kind a glimpse of a "car", which I proposed was a real transportation mechanism that the actual humans used in daily life. This proposal was met with a room full of hysterics until one day, an actual car fell down into the garbage dump.

As the leading scientist in the study of human culture, it wasn't long before a human book on demonology was brought into my hands. Intrigued, I had read it within a day, before my studies were cut short by an unexpected job offer I simply couldn't turn down.

Looking back, maybe that hadn't been the best of choices.

I mean, really. What good could come from experimenting with the dead? A dead _human_ no less?

G... my boss reassured me that it was for science and the greater good, and it was our research that could one day result in the breaking of the barrier, yet... I was... hehe... scared. And well, in light of recent events, maybe my fears were correct after all.

So I've been watching. Watching as my creation slaughtered my people, watching as it dusted my s... skeleton friend, again and again. All these years... I've been watching. But I always had this feeling, this feeling as if I was missing one very crucial detail. Until recently, that is.

Until recently, Sans was the only one who ever posed a challenge to the demon at all. Until recently, Sans was the only one who _understood_ the demon at all. But that's going to change. Because this time, I managed to get close enough to catch a glimpse of its eyes. And in its eyes, I found the one thing I've been missing; the one thing that Sans had understood, and the one thing that allowed him to face the demon as an equal. Because they were just like him...

 _There was nothing inside._

~A.H.

* * *

 **A/N: A.H. , huh? Wonder who that could be... ;)**


	11. Premonitions

**Premonitions**

"Please! I—I didn't mean it! It was a spur of the moment—I never—"

Your words are cut short as a sharp spike of white bone protruded out of the ground, impaling you in the torso and causing you to choke on your own blood. You cough, red liquid splattering in front of you. The judge, however, is unsympathetic. With a wave of his hand, two more bone spikes shoot out of the ground, impaling your arms and holding them in place. With a laugh, the judge walks forward, and with every step he takes, a horrifying weapon emerges out of the shadows, hovering in place, staring straight at you with dead, unblinking eyes.

"PLEASE! I—I'll repent! I'll, I'll... please! Have mercy! I promise, I promise I won't do it ever again! Please, PLEASE!" Your cries, desperate as they are, fall on deaf ears, and you scream like the pitiful child you are as one of the blasters' jaws unhinge, a white light gathering within it's endless maw. As if on cue, the rest of the blasters follow suit, and you whimper as the horrifying sounds of whirring fill the hall.

"I was... I was so close..."

The judge chuckles, and the blasters stop charging for a moment as he steps into the light. White pinpricks of light dart from your pinioned arms to your bloodied face, and the judge chuckles once more.

"yeah, say what you want kid. i guess it can't be denied that you were pretty close but, heh, didn't i tell ya from the beginning, kid?"

A burst of blue ignites within the judge's left eye, and you close your eyes as the horrendous whirring fills the room once more.

"we've already won."

* * *

And with that, Sans unleashes his judgment, and all goes white.

* * *

You gasp as you sit bolt upright, wincing slightly as a pain rings through your broken arm(y'know, the one Sans broke two chapters ago). It had healed a little since then, but broken bones took really long to heal despit

* * *

e a demon's natural regeneration, and monster food can only restore your HP and heal minor flesh wounds, not fix broken bones. You feel your shirt sticking to your skin, before realizing your entire body is covered in cold sweat. You frantically look around, fearing that you would find yourself in the judgment hall, but sigh in relief as you find yourself in the dark, rocky walls of Waterfall. You lean back against the wall you had bean sleeping against, passing a hand over your fringe and through your hair, feeling the perspiration that matted the strands of brown together. You take a deep breath, before exhaling deeply, allowing your body to slide forward. You wipe the sweat from your brow, swallowing to moisten your dry throat. It's only after doing this for a solid minute before you manage to croak out any words at all.

"That," you say, "was one hell of a dream."

You sigh once more, before getting up, wiping your sweaty palms on your jeans, causing the dust on it to clump together, sticking to your hands. You dust your jeans off with the back of your hands, observing yhow the tiny flakes float down slowly, before settling themselves on the ground, adding to the pile a of dust around you.

Maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to take a nap amongst the remnants of your fallen victims after all.

Or maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to kill at all...

You shake your head violently, chiding yourself for letting any doubt enter your mind at all. Confidence is crucial in your mission; any self-doubt would hinder your readiness to kill and, therefore, lower your attack stat.

You start walking, absently kicking over some piles of dust as you put one foot in front of the other, lost in thought.

What was that dream? The only time you ever had dreams this real was when they were flashes of the past, but you could never recall any timeline where you had begged Sans for mercy.

Your blood starts to boil at the thought, and you're pretty sure your face is flushed too. How utterly humiliating! But you know for a fact that that had never happened before; if it had, Sans would never have let you heard the end of it. But if it wasn't a vision of the past, what could it be? Surely, it couldn't be a vision to the future, right? After all, Sans was dead. And, as **far** as you know, there's no one else nearly as powerful—

Well, if frickin GRILLBY was secretly some flaming demon thing inside, pretty much any monster could be as powerful as Sans.

Now that you think about it though, what exactly had caused so much change? Like yeah, sure, you used Frisk's name and all, but that kind of little detail would at most make all the enemies a bit stronger, maybe make it harder for you to gain LV and EXP. It didn't explain why Toriel was so much younger, why Grillby was some strange fire demon thingy, and why Sans had decided to engage you earlier. And, well...

It didn't explain why you can't RESET anymore.

You frown as you reach a room full of echo flowers.

Weird... sure, echo flowers are nothing new, but this room has... so many.

You look around. Dust, dust, dust... no monsters. Alright then; since there happens to be nothing to kill, you decide to sit down and... listen to nature. Like, you might as well... it's not like you're tired or anything...

You give up and lie amongst the flowers, shutting your eyes as the flowers... well, echo around you.

* * *

 _"... hmmm... if I say my wish... you promise you won't laugh at me?"_

 _"Of course I won't laugh!"_

 _"Someday, I'd like to climb this mountain we're all buried under, standing under the sky, looking at the world all around... That's my wish."_

 _"Ha ha ha ha ha!"_

 _"...hey, you said you wouldn't laugh at it!"_

 _"Sorry, it's just funny... That's my wish, too."_

* * *

"Golly, you sure are bored, aren't you?"

Your eyes snap open and you lash out with your knife, only for a large vine to reach out and wrap itself around your wrist, twisting it and causing you to drop your knife in pain. Another wraps around your ankle, and soon you find yourself hanging upside down, with vines around every limb.

"Gosh, and here I thought that this new timeline would slow you down at least a little! You're really strong Chara! I mean, there aren't a lot of monsters that could even stand a chance against you, not even in what's supposed to be hard mode! It'd be such a pity... **_iF sOmeONe wEre tO wiPe yOU oFF tHe FaCe oF tHis wOrLd."_**

Flowey cackles, and your body tenses as you brace yourself for an attack, but to your surprise the vines let go, and retract back into the ground. Flowey's face shifts back into a regular smile.

"...but like I said, it'd be a pity. Heh, I really had you there, didn't I?"

"What do you want, Asriel?"

"Asriel is a lovely goat child who happens to be the prince of monsters. I'm a soulless demon flower with issues. Please, call me Flowey."

"What do you want?"

At this Flowey's face lit up with a very convincing facsimile of cheerfulness.

"Well, I want to help you of course! I mean, if you had trouble with Grillby of all people—"

"How was I supposed to know he'd turn into some flaming demon thing?"

"—surely you would want a little advice on how to beat everyone else?"

You consider it. The damned Flower was right... what with everything being so different, you didn't know what to expect; coupled with your inability to reset, you need all the help you can get.

"...what's the catch?"

"Why would there be a catch? You know I'd do anything for you Chara—"

"Asriel."

Flowey pouts, crossing his leaves.

"...I want you to owe me a favour. I don't exactly need you to do anything at the moment, but I want you to have my back when I do."

You try not to let your surprise show on your face. He isn't serious, is he? You suppress a chuckle.

Looks like Asriel's just as naive as ever.

"Alright then Asriel; I accept."

 **"Tell me all about this world."**

* * *

Put the machine in your dimensional box, she said.

Bring it to the barrier, she said.

It won't be all that much trouble, she said.

Mike sighed. You know, when someone pumps you full of magical steroids, the last thing you'd expect them to ask you do was play delivery boy. Granted, this was a really important delivery, but c'mon: why couldn't Mettaton do it? All the guy did all day was paint his nails!

Then again, those were some fabulous nails...

Dammit, Mike, focus!

"Yeah, Mike, focus!"

Mike sighed once more, not even bothering to turn around.

"What are you doing here?"

The voice behind him hummed.

"Aunt Alphys told me to go see how Red was doing at the CORE, and check up on you while I'm here."

Mike raised an eyebrow. "Really now? Since when did you become the responsible one?"

"Since you decided to leave Aunt Alphys in the lurch when Undyne caught you with your hands on her shoulders."

"...shut up."

The source of the voice ruffled his head, taking care not to get cut on his spikes.

"Hush now, kids shouldn't swear."

"Shut up isn't a swear word"

"It is for teeny toddlers like you."

Mike scowled. "I'm twelve."

"And I'm the elder sibling, which gives me all the authority over what profanities are allowed to come out from your cute little mouth~" she sang, giving Mike a little boop on the nose to emphasize her point.

"So are you done 'checking up on me'? Cuz I kinda need to get a move on."

"Nope." She replied, popping the 'p'. "I still gotta give some not-so-subtle exposition about myself, so that the readers know I'm gonna play a not-so-subtle role in this story." She said, standing in front of him with a hand on one hip.

"Well let me know when you're done with that, cuz I really need to get a move on."

Mike strode past his sister, before a hand landed on his shoulder.

"Mike."

Mike froze at the tone of her voice.

"You saw how powerful that... thing... Is. You saw what it did to Sans. And you know for a fact there's no way it'll stop its onslaught at Waterfall."

"...just what are you getting at here?"

"She's your hero, Mike. And you know very well what happens to her at Waterfall. And you know even better what happens afterwards."

"Again, what exactly are you getting at here?"

"My point is, are you ready for what comes next?"

Mike was silent for a while, before he shrugged his sister's hand off, and continued moving forward.

"The question is, Rachel," he called over his shoulder.

"Are you ready for what comes next?"

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry this chap took so long guys! I had school... And school... And next month my CCA will be starting again which means even more school... yeah you kinda get the picture.**

 **Another reason why I took so long is that I actually didn't know where this chapter was going, so I apologize if this chap doesn't really match up with the interlude I gave you guys. But don't worry; everything will be revealed in due time.**

 **I'm also pretty curious: have you guys figured out who Mike is yet? Cuz I've been referring to him quite blatantly as if everyone already knows who he is, but if you haven't figured out who he is yet things get kinda awkward.**

 **Also, I've been considering rewriting the Ragnas chapter. I dunno about you, but I kinda hate how that turned out. I'm really considering rewriting the thing, cuz it kinda feels like one of those irritating stains that don't outright ruin your shirt but you just can't take your mind off of removing it for some reason.**

 **Lastly, I'm planning to change the title of this story to "Megalo Strikes Back". Cuz, Y'know I've been naming chapters after character themes and I figured why not name the story after Chara's theme? Besides, I'm pretty much in love with the theme and it has a kickass name too.**

 **Lemme know what you think in the reviews... or, well, don't. No one's forcing you, but if no one replies then I'll just go with my own decision.**


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